With tween sensation Yu Zidi stepping into the global spotlight as some senior stars struggle with a dip in performance, China's swimming squad has completed its first major test of the new Olympic cycle with mixed results.

The eight-day swimming program of the World Aquatics Championships concluded on Sunday with a total of three world and 15 meet records refreshed at the Singapore Sports Hub, where the swimming powerhouses of the United States and Australia continue to reign supreme across all individual and relay events.

China's 12-year-old prodigy Yu, although leaving without an individual medal around her neck, has stolen the show from the record-smashing, gold-mining international stars by reaching the final in all three of her individual events. She made history by becoming the first swimmer of her age to do so, completing an exceptionally strong senior debut never before seen from anyone, male or female.

The fact that she narrowly missed the podium in three individual races, all by hair-thin margins — 0.06 seconds in the 200m medley, 0.31 in the 200m butterfly and 0.50 in 400m medley, respectively, speaks volumes for the staggering potential of the young phenom, who, after probably her coolest summer holiday ever, still has homework to finish.

Although skipping the evening's final session, Yu still became the youngest swimmer in history to win a medal at the worlds on Thursday after contributing to China's women's bronze-winning 4x200m freestyle relay team as a leg in the morning's preliminary heats.

Yu said racing against elite swimmers she once watched on television has provided invaluable experience.

"I learned so much," Yu told Xinhua. "For example, I want to study Summer McIntosh's turns. I really admire her technique. I see her as a role model, and I hope I can become as good as she is someday."

World-class swimmers including Romania's men's double-gold winner David Popovici and Canada's female medley swimmer Mary-Sophie Harvey have taken notice of Yu's rise, hailing her performance as a glimpse of the sport's awesome future potential.

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"I noticed her. Her 12-year-old times are much faster than mine at that age. When I was 12, I set the national record in the 200m medley, but I was still seven seconds slower than her. She's really fast," Popovici said of Yu's performance on July 29.

Harvey, who held off a surging Yu in the 200m medley final to finish in third, said the big-time experience will, for sure, help Yu's growth under pressure.

"She might have more pressure by the end of the meet, because she's been swimming really well so far. I used to be a junior, and I used to think that it's just gaining experience for the future, and I think going into LA, we're probably going to see her a lot more," Harvey said.

"I think it's good for younger people to just get that experience, and swim without any pressure, because they don't have expectations, it's just a bonus every time they swim faster."

Yu's emergence was the bright spot of a youthful Chinese squad that finished third in swimming's overall medal standings with two golds, six silvers and six bronzes, trailing only the US and Australia.

China's breaststroke star Qin Haiyang, who swept all three titles in the stroke at the 2023 Fukuoka worlds but left the Paris Olympics without an individual gold, returned to form by winning the men's 100m and 200m in Singapore.

Women's distance freestyle contender Li Bingjie opened her campaign by taking silver in the 400m, after edging her idol and American great Katie Ledecky on July 27, followed by another runner-up finish in the 200m on July 30.

ALSO READ: Victory in the water: Li Bingjie looks for ripple effect

Still, the disappointing performance of China's reigning men's 100m free Olympic champion and world record-holder Pan Zhanle has raised concerns of fans over the post-Olympic slump of the 21-year-old star.

Pan even failed to reach the final in 100m in Singapore, finishing 10th in the semis with a mediocre 47.81 on Wednesday, exactly one year after he stunned the world at Paris 2024 by clocking a new world record of 46.40 to win Olympic gold in the sprint event.

Pan also failed to reach the 200m semifinals at his fourth worlds, showing that he remains a long way from recovery, both mentally and physically, from the heavy toll taken by his Olympic preparations.

"Tenth place!?" Pan responded in disbelief when told the 100m result, before admitting: "I am not in good shape."

Following his breakout performance in Paris, Pan became a celebrity beyond the country's sporting circles, drawing a surge of media and public interest that disrupted his training. When he returned to the pool at the end of 2024, Pan admitted he was far from competitive.

"His form at the Olympics was 100 out of 100. Now, maybe 20 out of 100," coach Zheng Kunliang said in a TV interview in November.

Similar performance slumps also saw Tokyo 2020 women's 200m butterfly gold medalist Zhang Yufei, men's 200m medley Olympic champion Wang Shun and former backstroke world champion Xu Jiayu head home empty-handed.

READ MORE: Qin Haiyang completes breaststroke golden double at Singapore Worlds

"This is the first international competition of the new Olympic cycle," China's head coach Cui Dengrong told Xinhua. "Our focus is on developing young athletes and coaches, while assessing our standing on the world stage."