Kyle Chalmers shatters swimming world record leaving legend Ian Thorpe stunned ... but it won’t be recognised
Kyle Chalmers stunned Ian Thorpe after swimming the two-length sprint 0.21 seconds quicker than the current record. Here’s why it doesn’t count.
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Kyle Chalmers shattered the world record in the men’s 4x100m freestyle relay team at Paris 2024.
The Australian swimmer swam the two-length sprint 0.21 seconds quicker than the current mark - but his time will not count.
Chalmers, 26, delivered an impressive fourth leg, yet fell short of securing gold against the reigning world champions USA.
The Aussies trailed for most of the three legs until Kai Taylor pulled it back to put the team into medal contention.
Then Chalmers, known as “Big Tuna”, brought it home securing the Australian squad silver.
Swimming legend Ian Thorpe called it “the best relay I’ve ever seen from Kyle Chalmers”.
He started his leg with a struggling Australian side but ended his 100m split in 46.59 seconds - smashing China’s Pan Zhanle’s world record time of 46.80 from earlier this year.
But his time will not count officially because it was recorded during a relay event.
According to World Aquatics, only the swimmer in the lead leg is eligible for an official time and Chalmers was the fourth in the race.
This is because the dive that starts the swimmers in the second to fourth legs is faster than the regular starts where athletes must remain still until the race begins.
Chalmers already holds the short course 100m freestyle world record with a time of 44.84 seconds.
And his unbelievable performance at the Paris La Defense Arena is a strong sign he can secure the long-distance record officially in the individual event on Tuesday.
The Aussie nearly quit the sport after claims at the 2022 Commonwealth Games he was involved in a “love triangle” with his team-mates Cody Simpson and Emma McKeon.
But he eventually bounced back and met his now-fiancee Norweigan swimmer Ingeborg Loyning.
This article originally appeared in The Sun and was reproduced with permission
Originally published as Kyle Chalmers shatters swimming world record leaving legend Ian Thorpe stunned ... but it won’t be recognised
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