Pan Zhanle Unleashes 46.40 100 Freestyle for Olympic Gold, Obliterates World Record

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We had to wait until day five at the 2024 Paris Olympics to get a world record, but when we got it, it wasn’t by a little. Pan Zhanle destroyed his 100 freestyle world record, claiming Olympic gold in a monstrous time of 46.40.

The men’s 100 freestyle is always one of the most anticipated races of the swimming program. This year, the excitement for this Olympic showdown was amped up by how deep the field was. It boasted Pan, the current world record holder, David Popovici, the former world record holder, and Kyle Chalmers, the 2016 Olympic champion, just to name a few. But even as the anticipation grew, many expected that so many big bodies together in the water would prevent a new world record from being set even with so many of the fastest men in history present.

Pan defied expectations. There was also a lot of talk about how important positioning was going to be in this race. One of Pan’s strengths is his front half speed and as expected, the 19-year-old world champion grabbed the race by both hands. He shot out to the lead, turning in 22.28 to the feet.

He did not let up on the way home, pouring on the gas with a 24.12 closing split. His time of 46.40 chops a full four-tenths off the world record that he swam leading off China’s 4×100 freestyle relay at the 2024 World Championships.

Split Comparison, Last Three Men’s 100 Freestyle WR Swims

It’s the back half that helped Pan explode for this world record. He was right on his opening split from Doha which got him out to the front of the race by .33 seconds over Maxime Grousset. But he didn’t come back to the field like he did in Doha. Instead, Pan–who began his career as a distance swimmer–found speed in the final 50 meters. He unleashed a 24.12 back-half, tying Popovici’s split from his world record swim two years ago.

Fastest Back-Half Splits of All-Time

1. David Popovici (ROU), 24.05 — 2022 European Championships
2. David Popovici (ROU), 24.09 — 2024 European Championships
3. Andrei Minakov (RUS), 24.11 — 2021 Russian Nationals
4. David Popovici (ROU)/Pan Zhanle, 24.12 — 2022 European Championships/2024 Olympic Games
5. —
6. David Popovici (ROU), 24.19 — 2022 European Junior Championships

Pan won by 1.08 seconds over Chalmers, one of the largest margins of victory we’ve seen in this event at the Olympics in years. He showed that he was on form in the 100 freestyle on the opening day of the Olympic Games by leading off China’s 4×100 freestyle relay, in a then-Olympic record of 46.92. He was the only lead-off man under 47 seconds but backed off during prelims of the men’s 100 free. He improved in the semifinals and secured lane four but saved the fireworks for the moment that mattered most.

Pan is not one of the 23 Chinese swimmers who reportedly tested positive for TMZ seven months before the Tokyo Olympics. The story of the doping scandal first broke earlier this year from reports by The New York Times and ARD. Following that report, World Aquatics shared that  Chinese swimmers were the most tested athletes by a wide margin this year and were tested more frequently than other nations’ swimmers in the lead-up to Paris.

This is the first world record set at these Olympic Games, which keeps the streak of at least one world record being set at an Olympics alive. We’d seen many Olympic records go down at these Games but were still waiting for a world record in a difficult pool. In addition, Pan is the first male swimmer to break a world record in 2024.