Chinese male swimmers have flown the country's flag and kept the hopes of fans alive as almost all their female counterparts missed podium spots at the ongoing 2016 Summer Olympic Games in the City of Rio de Janeiro.

Young swimmers Xu Jiayu and Li Guangyuan both booked spots in the men's 200m backstroke final, ranking fifth and sixth respectively in Wednesday's semifinals.

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According to China Daily, the 21-year-old Xu, who already secured a silver medal in the men's 100-meter backstroke final and became China's first male Olympic backstroke medalist, swam in the 200-meter backstroke final with a fifth place, clocking 1.55.66.

Xu, a native of Wenzhou, Zhejiang, registered a silver medal finish at the 200-meter backstroke at the 2014 Asian Games in Incheon, South Korea. He is the current national record holder in backstroke of all distances (50m, 100m, and 200m).

While the 19-year-old Li Guangyuan got off to a slow start, he managed to finish the semifinal race with a personal best time of 1.55.92.

In the men's 200m individual medley semifinal, Wang Shun finished in sixth place to secure a final berth. The 22-year-old native of Ningbo, Zhejiang has set up a swimming encounter with the world's most awarded Olympian Michael Phelps and five-time Olympic gold medalist and world champion Ryan Lochte of the United States.

Tagsxu jiayu, michael phelps, Rio Olympics 2016, Li Guangyuan, Ryan Lochte