By Ci Xin and Fu Rui/China Youth Daily
Pan Zhanle, a Chinese swimmer, defeated David Popovici, Kyle Chalmers, Jack Alexy and other world-renowned players all the way to win China's first Olympic gold medal in the men's 100-meter freestyle with a stunning result of 46.40 seconds, breaking his own previous record of 46.80 seconds set in Doha World Aquatics Championships in February this year.
Pan was in the men's 100m freestyle final at the Paris Olympics. Photo by Li Junhui/China Youth Daily
The men's 100-meter freestyle is one of the most popular and influential events in the Olympic swimming competition, where European, American and Australian athletes have long dominated the medal table since the 1932 Los Angeles Olympic Games. Pan became the first Asian athlete to win an Olympic gold medal in the men's 100m freestyle. He is not only Olympic champion but also world champion who has set both the Olympic record and the world record.
On the day Pan claimed the gold medal, he was still 4 days away from turning age 20. His journey on the international scene started from the 2022 World Aquatics Championships. Since then, he has made a name for himself in the world swimming history in just two years. In the men's 100m freestyle final of the Paris Olympics, Pan beat runner up Chalmers by more than 1 second. The time gap of the 100m freestyle is often measured in milliseconds, highlighting Pan's surprising advantage.
Since high-tech swimsuits were banned in 2009, no progress had been made in the men's 100m freestyle for a long time. In 2022, Romanian athlete Popovici broke the record that had been held for 13 years. During the 13-year period, only Popovici and American athlete Caeleb Dressel swam within 47 seconds. However, Pan rewrote the record twice in the last two years. Previously, he broke Popovici's record from 46.91 seconds to 46.80 seconds. At this Olympic Games, he raised his own previous record to 46.40 seconds. For short-distance freestyle, it's hard to raise the record by 0.01 seconds.
In an interview with China Youth Daily, Ye Xin, Pan's mentor coach, said that Pan showed swimming talent during his childhood.
"Pan's body was light in the water like 'floating'." Ye said, when Pan swam, it felt like he was "chasing the waves", which could be a gift of "driving the water". Also, Pan worked hard every time he trained. Starting swimming at the age of four and a half, he has maintained "high-standard self demanding" until now.
Pan was sent to a youth sports school for professional training in the second grade of elementary school. On a summer afternoon before Pan entered the sports school, Ye said to this 9-year-old boy: "Five goals hereafter: becoming the champion at the municipal level, the provincial level, the national level, the Asian level and the Olympic level." Pan nodded.
Afterwards, Ye kept in touch with him, as well as coaches from the sports school and provincial team. They all believed that Pan would definitely become a world-class swimmer.
After winning the championship of the men's 100m freestyle, Pan raised his arms in triumph. Photo by Li Junhui/China Youth Daily
A year later, Ye witnessed Pan sweeping seven gold medals at the city game in Wenzhou, Zhejiang province, Southeast China. Ye stressed that seven events were maximum for a swimmer of Pan's age then. In the next year, Pan participated in provincial's game and won the championship in all the seven events once again.
Ye explained that Pan has strong legs, combined with speed and endurance. Thelower limb strength is attributed to the scientific early childhood training from the provincial team. During the initial stages, little trainees focus on their leg movements. This laid a solid foundation for Pan's career. Additionally, as Pan had previously trained in middle and long-distance freestyle swimming, his speed and endurance have improved.
Pan's victory boosted the morale of the Chinese National Swimming Team, who was facing immense external pressure during the game due to unjust criticisms.
Pan maintains friendly relationships with athletes of many other countries. He frequently interacts on social media with Hwang Sun-woo, a top short-distance freestyle swimmer of the Republic of Korea. After winning the champion of the 100m freestyle race at the Paris Olympics, Pan shaked hands with Popovici with kindness and respect.
At the age of 20, Pan's golden time has just begun. No one knows how much potential he still has. In the men's 100m freestyle racing, which best represents the ultimate speed of human swimming, he wrote a new chapter for China. Many believe that it is far from the end.
