'Not a genius, just hard work': Yu Zidi nearly medals at 12

"A genius?" Yu Zidi echoed when asked if she sees herself as one.

"No, not really," she replied. "It's all the result of hard training."

The 12-year-old swimming prodigy came within a heartbeat of a historic medal at the World Aquatics Championships on Monday, finishing fourth in the women's 200-meter individual medley.

Making her international debut, Yu clocked a personal best of two minutes 9.21 seconds - just 0.06 seconds behind bronze medalist Mary-Sophie Harvey of Canada, who touched in 2:09.15.

"My original goal was simply to give my best and try for a podium finish, even though I thought it might be out of reach," Yu told Chinese television after the race. "But I wanted to give it a shot. I came really close today, so I'll keep working hard when I get back."

A primary school student, Yu showed remarkable composure and progression across all three rounds, improving from 2:11.90 in the heats to 2:10.22 in the semifinals before reaching her personal best in the final.

"I was really nervous before the race," she said. "But at the same time, I was excited to compete against some of the world's top athletes. The result was excellent - it exceeded my expectations."

Yu held third place at the halfway mark, but her breaststroke leg cost her crucial time. Despite a strong comeback in the freestyle, the margin proved too tight.

"My breaststroke still needs a lot of work," she admitted. "It's something I'll definitely focus on improving in training."

Asked to reflect on her overall performance, Yu said, "I can't say I'm totally satisfied, but it's alright. I need to keep working hard."

Yu made headlines earlier this year at China's national championships, where she swam 2:10.63 - the fastest time ever recorded by a 12-year-old - to take the silver medal.

She is set to race again in the women's 200m butterfly on July 30 and the 400m individual medley on August 3.