- Chalmers revealed he received a lot of criticism over ‘rejection’
- Says he has cleared the air with his Chinese rival Pan Zhanle
- Says he looks forward to further developing the relationship with Pan
Kyle Chalmers has revealed he has spoken to his Chinese rival Pan Zhanle to smooth over the situation after he was accused of ignoring the gold medallist at the Paris Olympics.
Pan claimed China’s first gold medal in the pool on Thursday morning (AEST) in Paris, setting a new world record and beating the Australian champion.
Speaking to a Chinese news network after the race, Pan lashed out at Chalmers, accusing him of ignoring him after winning silver in the one-sided final.
That led to a storm of protest on the Chinese social media platform Weibo, which has more than 605 million users, according to Statista.
Chalmers admitted he has felt the negative reactions, but said he has cleared the air with Pan.
“A huge amount of sadness, which is of course very difficult mentally,” Chalmers said News Corp.
“But I know I did everything I could to be respectful, just as I do to all my competitors.
‘Over the years I’ve built some great relationships with the guys I’ve raced against and with and I think this will be no different.
Kyle Chalmers says he’s been hurting a lot over the rejection drama
Chalmers says he has spoken to Chinese rival Pan Zhanle to clear the air
‘I’m really looking forward to developing our relationship further, challenging each other and having some great battles in the pool over the years.
“It’s all one now. Last year we raced in the world championship and I was better than him, but this year he was better than me, so I’m looking forward to taking it to round three next year.”
The Australian said he asked Pan about his interview with Chinese television and he insisted he had no problem with him.
“To be honest, it’s been quite hectic the last three or four days,” Chalmers said.
“I said something like, ‘I don’t know if you’ve seen it in the media, but I find it a bit strange because we’ve had so many positive conversations,’ and I can’t really understand why this is happening.
Chalmers finished second to the Chinese star in the men’s 100m freestyle final
He said, ‘I have tremendous respect for you as a competitor and as a person.’
“But it’s very difficult because we both clearly don’t speak the same language. I don’t speak any Chinese, so it’s quite difficult to talk, but from my point of view I don’t have any problems with it.
“His race was amazing the other night and I feel honored to be part of the fastest race ever swum in the 100m freestyle in history. It’s an incredible achievement.”
Chalmers’ secret weapon at the Paris Games could be his new fiancée Ingeborg Løyning.
The Australian endured an emotional rollercoaster during the 2022 Commonwealth Games as rumours emerged that there was a ‘love triangle’ between him and his lovebirds Emma McKeon and Cody Simpson.
The ordeal made Chalmers seriously consider quitting the sport he loves so much, but he seems completely reborn in Paris and wants revenge on Løyning.
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Although the swimmers weren’t present at the opening ceremony along the Seine in Paris, he did share photos from inside the Australian athletes’ village, including one in which he looks completely smitten with Løyning.
“My Norwegian princess,” he captioned the photo with a heart emoji.
Chalmers and Løyning announced their engagement in June of this year, putting an end to rumors of a “love triangle” once and for all.