Record-breaking Liu rekindles Tokyo belief

China's "swimming goddess" Liu Xiang cemented her status as an Olympic gold-medal contender by setting a new Asian record over the weekend.

The elite-field FINA Champions Swim Series concluded its Beijing leg on Sunday with Liu stealing the show by shaving one hundredth of a second of her own 50m freestyle continental mark.

The 23-year-old touched first in 24.03 ahead of London 2012 Olympic champion Ranomi Kromowidjojo of the Netherlands (24.38) and compatriot Femke Heemskerk (24.79) at the Olympic Center Natatorium in the capital.

The performance capped a superb week for Liu, who also won Saturday's 50m backstroke and the same two races at the series' opening leg in Shenzhen last Tuesday and Wednesday.

"I didn't expect to break the record now as I am way off my best condition physically midway through the winter training program," Liu said in disbelief.

"I thought my old record was already the best I could do. Swimming faster today really helps get my confidence back and rekindles my hopes for the Tokyo Olympics," said Liu, who set her first Asian mark (24.04) at the 2017 National Games in Tianjin.

Liu's 50m free time－which surpasses Australian Cate Campbell's previous season-leading mark of 24.08－would've been good enough for victory at last year's FINA World Championships, where Sweden's Sarah Sjostrom clocked 24.26 to win gold and Liu failed to even reach the final.

Sunday's time, therefore, sounds a strong warning to Liu's rivals ahead of the Tokyo Olympics, and has inevitably led to expectations that she could challenge Sjostrom's world record (23.67), which was set at the 2017 worlds in Budapest.

Typically, though, the soft-spoken Guangzhou native chose to keep her feet on the ground.

"The disappointing 2019 worlds campaign was a big blow and made me doubt myself and whether I could still push for improvements," said Liu.

"Now with my confidence back, I think I can still improve a lot in my core strength, my starting and my underwater kicking.

"I won't think too much on how fast I can swim (in Tokyo). I will only focus on how much I can push myself in training."

Regarded as an exceptional backstroke sprinter early in her career, Liu shot to prominence at the 2018 Asian Games in Indonesia, where she became the first woman to break the 27-second barrier in the 50m back (26.98).

The standout performance saw the photogenic star dubbed a "swimming goddess" by fans, however, she shies away from talk about her supermodel looks.

In a recent interview with Tencent, Liu said she'd rather earn fame purely for her swimming ability than be considered a "vase in the pool".

Four golds at the Champions series' Shenzhen and Beijing stops over the last week sends a strong signal to Liu's international rivals, according to Liu's coach, He Xinzhong.

"She's now more confident than ever and that came from a solid physical training program which has produced encouraging results," said He, who has coached Liu since 2010.

With 50m back not included in the Olympic program, He said that Liu will only focus on freestyle in the build-up to Tokyo, with her training tailored to enhancing her leg strength.

This is the second edition of the FINA Champions Swim Series, which requires a higher entry benchmark than the World Cup circuit. With no heats, each event is contested by just four swimmers.

China scooped four more golds on Sunday to bring its total haul to nine at the two-day Beijing meet.

Three-time Olympic champion Sun Yang dominated the men's 400m freestyle, taking the lead after two laps to win in 3:44.98 ahead of compatriot Ji Xinjie (3:47.04) and Danas Rapsys of Lithuania (3:49.62).

"Three titles in five days, I am pretty happy with my performance as I've managed to stay smooth and steady in every race," said Sun, who also claimed golds in the 200 free in Beijing and the 400 free in Shenzhen.

"It is the only international event we can have before the Olympic Games, it is like a rehearsal for us," added the Chinese captain.

Yu Jingyao collected gold for China in the women's 100 breaststroke in 1:07.18, while Yang Junxuan broke the Chinese national record by winning the women's 200 free in 1:54.98.