China’s Pan Zhanle made history on Wednesday at the La Défense Arena in Paris, winning the gold medal in the men’s 100-meter freestyle and breaking the world record he set in February. It was the first world record to be broken in the pool at these Paris Olympics.
The debuting Olympian clocked 46.40, taking .40 seconds off the previous world record of 46.80 set earlier this year at the world championships in Doha. Australia’s Kyle Chalmers took silver with a 47.48, while Romania’s David Popovici won bronze with a 47.49. Team USA’s Jack Alexy and Chris Guiliano finished seventh and eighth, respectively.
The 19-year-old Zhanle’s performance capped off a fantastic day in the pool, with Team USA’s Katie Ledecky taking gold in the 1500-meter freestyle and France’s Leon Marchand completing an unprecedented Olympic double by winning gold in both the 200-meter butterfly and 200-meter breaststroke.
