Olympic athlete accused of cheating after coach says world record is 'not humanly possible'

The men’s 100m freestyle final at the Paris Olympics will likely be one to remember, but maybe not for the right reasons after an Australian coach has questioned the validity of the gold medalists win.

Chinese swimmer, 19-year-old Pan Zhanle, came out on top for the Olympic event and was able to smash his own current world record by 0.4 seconds.

This would prove particularly a memorable day as it marked the first time China had earned its first ever 100m gold medal.

Pan defeated runner-up Kyle Chalmers of Australia by more than a second at the La Défense Arena, with Romania’s David Popovici coming in third place.

He managed to finish the race a whole body length ahead of his competitors - something that completely floored the commentators who couldn’t believe what they were witnessing.

However, not everyone was particularly impressed.

Australian coach and former Olympian Brett Hawke took issue with the victory, saying it was ‘too good to be true’ and to beat the world record in this manner was not ‘humanly possible’

Speaking on Instagram, he said: "Listen, I'm just going to be honest, I am angry at that swim. Look, I'm angry for a number of reasons.

"Look, my friends are the fastest swimmers in history from Rowdy Gaines to Alex Popov to Gary Hall Jr, Anthony Irvin and all the way up to King Kyle Chalmers. I know these people intimately, I've studied them for 30 years.

WORLD RECORD! 🥇

Pan Zhanle breaks his own WR with a truly stunning swim in the men's 100m freestyle final. #BBCOlympics #Olympics #Paris2024 pic.twitter.com/4aw2myrD6L

— BBC Sport (@BBCSport) July 31, 2024

"I've studied this sport. I've studied speed. I understand it. I'm an expert in it, that's what I do, okay. I'm upset right now because you don't win 100 freestyle by a body length on that field. You just don't do it.

"It is not humanly possible to beat that field by a body length."

The coach continued to say he would not be convinced that Pan had legitimately had won, but didn't go on to explain why it was so impossible that the record was beaten honestly.

"I don't care what you say. This is not a race thing, this is not against any one particular person or nation, this is just what I see and what I know.

"That's not real, you don't beat that field. Kyle Chalmers, David Popovici, Jack Alexy, you don't beat those guys by one full body length in 100 freestyle.

"That's not humanly possible okay, so don't sell it to me, don't shove it down my throat. It's not real."

In a follow up post, he added that ‘if something seems too good to be true, it probably is’.

Silver medalist Chalmers helped douse the suggestions that Pan had done anything untoward, though.

Following the race, he said: "I do everything I possibly can to win the race and trust everyone's doing the same as I am, staying true to the integrity of sport.

"I trust that [Pan] deserves that gold medal."

UNILAD has contacted the Chinese Olympic Committee for comment.