July 29th 2024.
At the Paris 2024 Games, the swimming world was in awe as Australian athlete Kyle Chalmers made a name for himself with an impressive performance. However, despite breaking the world record, his time will not be officially recognized.
It all happened during the men's 4x100m freestyle relay final at the La Defense Arena in the beautiful French capital. As the last swimmer for his team, Chalmers completed the two-length sprint with a time that was 0.21 seconds faster than the current world record. The race was dominated by the reigning world champions, Team USA, but Chalmers, also known as "Big Tuna," gave it his all and secured a silver medal for his team.
The legendary Ian Thorpe, an Olympic icon, was in awe of Chalmers' performance, calling it "the best relay I've ever seen." Chalmers finished his 100m split in an impressive 46.59 seconds, beating the current world record of 46.80 set earlier this year by China's Pan Zhanle. Sadly, Chalmers' time will not be considered a world record as World Aquatics does not recognize relay event times. This is because swimmers in the second to fourth legs of the relay usually start faster, as they are not required to remain still until the whistle is blown.
This was a bittersweet moment for Australia, as they were able to add another medal to their tally in Paris, less than two years after Chalmers faced controversy and threatened to quit the sport. He was frustrated with "false headlines" about a rumored rift with his Commonwealth Games teammates, Cody Simpson and Emma McKeon. In an emotional moment, Chalmers declared that his career was at a "breaking point" and asked for the media to stop writing false stories, as it could potentially end his time in the sport.
Australia has always been known as a powerhouse in the swimming world, and this year's Olympics proved it once again. In the women's 200m freestyle, two of their biggest stars, Ariarne Titmus and Mollie O'Callaghan, took home the gold and silver medals respectively. O'Callaghan made a stunning start and maintained her lead throughout the race, leaving Titmus to settle for silver. Former Olympic champion Adrian Moorhouse described it as "stunning," while Olympic bronze medalist Steve Parry called it a "demolition job," as O'Callaghan beat Titmus with an Olympic record time.
[This article has been trending online recently and has been generated with AI. Your feed is customized.]
[Generative AI is experimental.]
