Pan Zhanle Crushes It and Sets a New World Record in Men's 100m Freestyle at Paris Olympics!

 

Dude, you won't believe what just went down at the Paris Olympics! This Chinese swimmer, Pan Zhanle, totally killed it in the men's 100m freestyle and broke the world record like it was nothing! He swam the race in, get this, 46.40 seconds, which is like super fast! Before this, his best time was 46.80 seconds from some meet in Doha this year. So, yeah, he totally smashed that!

China's First Swimming Gold - Fire Emoji

This win was a big deal for China, 'cause it's their first swimming gold medal at the Paris Games. Pan's win is huge for the country, especially considering he almost didn't make it through the semifinals, squeaking by with just 0.06 seconds to spare. And remember, he had some tough times in the 200m freestyle heats? So this is like a major comeback story, right?

Aussie Kyle Chalmers Gets Second Place

Some Australian guy named Kyle Chalmers, who's a total pro and won gold in 2016 in Rio, came in second with a time of 47.48 seconds. Not too shabby, but obviously not enough to beat Pan. And then there's this 19-year-old Romanian swimmer, David Popovici, who got the bronze. He's basically the next big thing, winning gold in the 200m freestyle here in Paris too.

Pan Zhanle's Mind-Blowing Reaction

Pan couldn't even believe he broke the record, saying it was like a "magical moment." He's all humble about it, saying it's just a small step for China's swimming progress. It's like he's saying, "Yeah, we're getting there, no big deal." But come on, it's a HUGE deal!

Chalmers' Mixed Feelings on Silver

Kyle Chalmers was pretty stoked about his silver, but you could tell he really wanted gold again. He talked about how he was so young and clueless in 2016 and how much this silver means to him now. It's like he's all grown up and stuff, you know?

Pan Zhanle's Epic Win for the History Books

So, Pan Zhanle is now the first Chinese swimmer to hold the world record and win gold in the 100m freestyle, which is basically the coolest race in swimming. It's a pretty big deal, and everyone's going crazy about it.