Swimmer Rishabh Das Into Asian Games 100m Backstroke Final With Personal Best

India’s Rishabh Das stormed into the men’s 100m backstroke final at the Asian Games on Sunday, producing a new personal best of 54.85 seconds to qualify as the fifth-fastest swimmer overall.

Competing in Heat 3, Das finished third in his heat behind China’s Asian record holder Xu Jiayu and South Korea’s Lee Juho. His 54.85-second effort, however, was fast enough to place him fifth across all the heats and secure a spot in the eight-man final.

The performance marked a significant improvement for Das, who had entered the event with a previous personal best of 55.44 seconds. He cut 0.59 seconds from that mark on the Asian Games stage.

Xu Jiayu topped the qualifying standings with 52.63 seconds, while Japan’s Hidekazu Takehara was second in 54.22. Lee Juho clocked 54.43 and Japan’s Nishiono Kodai finished fourth in 54.73, leaving Das fifth at 54.85.

The result means India will have one representative in the final after Utkarsh Patil missed out on qualification. Patil finished 12th overall with a timing of 56.19 seconds.

Das will now return to the pool for the final at 2:43 PM IST on Sunday, according to the published Asian Games schedule.

The final will present a tougher challenge, with Xu Jiayu leading the field after his commanding heat performance. Das, however, will enter the race having already produced his fastest-ever 100m backstroke swim.

India’s morning in the pool otherwise produced mixed results. In the men’s 100m freestyle heats, Benediction Beniston finished 12th in 50.25 seconds, while Akash Mani placed 23rd in 50.85 seconds, with neither advancing.

For Das, the focus now shifts from qualification to the medal race as he looks to build on his personal-best performance and make his mark in the Asian Games final.