After winning the gold medal in the men’s 100m freestyle, China’s Pan Zhanle appeared to take a dig at Australian Kyle Chalmers.
According to the Olympic gold medalist, Chalmers and his teammates disrespected the coaching staff and the new king of freestyle swimming.
In Paris, Pan set a new world record by finishing the race in a time of 46.40 seconds. Chalmers was able to take the silver medal with a time of 47.48.
Pan, who was interviewed by Chinese media, claimed that his rivals had treated him poorly before the competition.
According to Pan, after the 4×100-meter freestyle relay team finished its first day, he greeted Chalmers, but he didn’t acknowledge him.
He also claims that during a training session, an individual splashed water on the coach.
This behavior, according to Pan, seemed disrespectful to the Chinese team.
However, on the day of the competition, the Chinese swimmers were able to set a new world record.
He said that his strategy for the race was to start fast and maintain his pace throughout the entire race.
Pan claimed that he was starting to feel the support of the people in China before he entered the water, and he was able to pull away from his rivals in the last 15 meters.
His comments could be interpreted as a condemnation of the actions of the Chinese athletes, who are currently facing scrutiny due to the country’s widespread doping problems.
A day earlier, it was reported that two Chinese swimmers had tested positive for a banned substance in October 2022.
Pan, who was only 19 years old at that time, has not been implicated in the issue.
After receiving his medals, Pan and Australian competitor Kyle Chalmers, who was also 19, had an awkward handshake.
Chalmers was not suspicious of Pan’s performance.
According to the Australian sprinter, his comments were far from what he had been told earlier.
In an interview, Chalmers said that before they walked out, Pan told him that he was his idol and that he loved him.