Western Critics Back Down as China Celebrates Pan Zhanle's Record-Breaking Swim
The recent controversy surrounding Chinese swimmer Pan Zhanle has taken a surprising turn, as some Western critics who initially questioned the legitimacy of his record-breaking performance have quietly backed down.
17 August 2024
Following Pan's impressive 46.40-second win in the 100m freestyle event, which shattered his own world record, some Western voices, including Australian coach and former athlete Brett Hawke, cast doubt on the achievement, insinuating that Pan must have used performance-enhancing drugs. Hawke remarked that Pan's performance was "humanly impossible".
However, in a strange turn of events, these same critics have seemingly changed their tune. While the exact reason behind this sudden shift is unclear, many Chinese netizens have taken to social media to celebrate Pan's victory and mock the Western critics for their reversal.
On Weibo, the Chinese equivalent of Twitter, user @洛洛洛费 (Lolo) shared a video of Pan's interview, in which he addresses the criticism, saying "It's not about the depth of the pool, but about one's abilities." The user captioned the post, "Jealousy makes people ugly. Admitting others' hard work and surpassing oneself is really that difficult?"
Another user, @三思逍遥 (San Si Xiao Yao), a science popularization blogger, shared an article praising Pan's confidence and work ethic, saying "Pan is a young man who haseducational and real Olympic values."
Many users piled on, criticizing the Western critics for being "jealous" and "sour grapes". User @醒了 whoeni (Xing Le WO), wrote, "Don't try to deceive yourselves, Pan's achievement is real, and his urine tests are the most frequent. Your face turns ugly when you're jealous."
Sun Yang, the Chinese swimmer who has also faced doping allegations in the past, recently shared his own thoughts on selecting swimming athletes, including the criteria of arm span, body type, and water sensitivity. He said, "We used to have a selection standard where the arm span should be more than 10cm longer than one's height. I meet this standard, and my arm span is 2m12, 13cm longer than my height."
This subtle jab at the critics sparked a flurry of reactions, with many users praising Sun for his insight and criticizing the Western critics for their baseless attacks.
As one user, @panzipingzechang (Pan Ziping Ze Chang), exclaimed, "Why is it so hard to admit others' excellence? You can't just say someone is doping without solid evidence. Pan has already silenced his critics with his achievement!"
The online consensus among Chinese netizens seems to be that Pan's impressive performance has left the Western critics stunned and struggling to save face. Whether or not the criticism was truly silenced by Pan's achievement, it is clear that the Western critics' dramatic shift in tone has sparked a nationalistic pride among Chinese citizens, who see Pan's victory as a testament to China's growing prowess in the world of sports.