A Chinese swimmer dives into the pool in a training session on Monday in Beijing. Photo: Li Hao/GT

Chinese swimmers have put striving for better performances ahead of the glitter of medals as they prepare for the upcoming FINA World Championships in late July.

Defending backstroke world champion Xu Jiayu said his title defense is not a priority and prefers to remain low-key ahead of the worlds.

"I'm not very sure I can defend the title but I will do my best," Xu, who holds this year's best time of 52.27 seconds in 100-meter backstroke, told reporters after a training session on Monday. "The World Championships is just a phase; my ultimate goal is the Olympic Games," said Xu, who is participating in his fourth worlds.

He is likely to face stiff challenges from US swimmer Ryan Murphy and Australian Mitch Larkin in backstroke competitions. 

Backstroke star Fu Yuanhui, bronze medalist at Rio Olympics, will participate in the women's 50-meter and 100-meter backstroke. She is also highly likely to be included in China's women's relay team.

From a rising star to a "veteran," Fu, who is now 23, said her focus at the World Championships is just to swim as good as possible rather than focusing on reaching the podium.

"As I am aging, it will be a miracle if I can return to my peak form," Fu told reporters. "I don't think I can improve my best time but nobody can rule out all the possibilities."

The two backstroke stars, both from China's swimming powerhouse Zhejiang, also believe their systematic training this year will boost their ­chances at the FINA worlds.

Liu Xiang, the current world record holder in women's 50-meter backstroke, will focus on the 50-meter freestyle sprint as she has only just recovered from an injury.

A younger generation of Chinese swimmers has joined the national squad for the worlds, as 16-year-old Hong Jinquan will join the men's 200-meter relay team, while 14-year-old butterfly swimmer Wang Yichun and 14-year-old medley specialist Yu Yiting will swim women's race.

Star swimmer Sun Yang did not show up for the training session opening in Beijing as he is training individually in Hong Kong. He has applied to swim freestyle in the 200, 400, 800 and 1,500 meters at the World Championships, according to the Chinese Swimming Association.

Sun has skipped the 1,500 meters in several previous ­major competitions to focus on the other shorter-distance ­races. He is no longer dominating the 1,500 but remains the world record holder.

Sun missed a doping test in September 2018 which resulted in a damaged blood sample, but was cleared of wrongdoing by FINA as the anti-doping testers had breached testing rules. The World Anti-Doping Agency has appealed to the Court of Arbitration for Sport over FINA's decision but the case has not yet been heard.

The FINA World Championships opens Friday in Gwangju, South Korea and swimming runs from July 21 to 28. China's swim team is expected to leave for Gwangju on July 16.