July 31, Paris (Reuters) - At the Paris Olympics on Wednesday, Pan Zhanle of China destroyed his own world record in the 100-meter freestyle event, winning an incredible gold medal and defying other top competitors. With a time of 46.40 seconds, the 19-year-old phenom cut an amazing 0.40 seconds off his previous record, which he had set at the World Championships in Doha in February when he made waves with an astounding relay leadoff swim.
"I made every effort to achieve the best outcome. Speaking through a translator, Pan told reporters, "I was astonished to break the world record at the end, and it was a magical moment." Kyle Chalmers, the silver winner from Australia, finished a massive 1.08 seconds behind Pan, and David Popovici took third place, finishing 0.01 seconds behind. Pan shot off like a rocket and completed the first 50 meters in an incredible 22.28 seconds, showing no signs of slowing down. He stretched his lead and flew to the wall, crushing any chance of catching Chalmers and Popovici.
Following the announcement in April that 23 Chinese competitors had tested positive for a prohibited heart drug yet were still permitted to swim at the Tokyo Games, a doping storm has followed China's swim squad to Paris. China said the athletes were contaminated by food from a hotel kitchen, and the World Anti-Doping Agency's handling of the issue was supported by an independent inquiry.
The New York Times then revealed on Tuesday that two swimmers from 2022 had tested positive for a prohibited steroid, but that the results had also been attributed to tainted food, lifting their provisional suspensions. This brought China back into the public eye. However, five months after taking home the world championship, Pan, a native of Wenzhou, overcame the animosity to win his first Olympic gold medal.
When asked if the more than 20 tests he had received in the previous three months had affected him, he played it cool. "The testing was essentially done under all the regulations, so I don't feel there was any difference or influence," he stated. Chalmers, the Rio 2016 gold champion, earned his eighth medal at the Olympics and his second silver in the same event after placing second in the Tokyo Games behind Caeleb Dressel.
Before the Olympic trials, Chalmers battled a back injury and a coaching change after his previous one, Peter Bishop, was sacked in March following an unknown inquiry. For the past eight years, I have been swimming according to the same race plan, and it has generally been successful for me. I was almost successful with that. "I suppose receiving a silver medal tonight was still incredible," Chalmers remarked. Popovici added the bronze to his gold medal in the 200-meter freestyle in Paris. Popovici had previously held the world record before Pan broke it in Doha.
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