An Australian swimming coach has stated that the stunning world record set by Chinese swimmer Pan Zhanle in the men’s 100m freestyle event at the Paris Olympics was ‘not humanly possible’.

Brett Hawke was among some quarters who expressed concerns over the 19-year-old’s dominant victory, which saw him beat the nearest rival by more than a second.

Pan’s time of 46.40 seconds shattered his own previous world record, marking the biggest winning margin in the men’s 100m freestyle since the legendary American swimmer Johnny Weissmuller in 1928. But his achievement has been overshadowed by the ongoing doping controversy surrounding the Chinese swimming team.

A recent investigation by The New York Times and German broadcaster ARD reported that 23 athletes from the Chinese team had failed drug tests for a banned heart medication at the Tokyo 2020 Olympics, with 11 of them competing in the current Paris Games. Two other Chinese athletes were cleared after testing positive for a strong anabolic steroid in 2022, which was blamed on contaminated meat.

Despite these revelations, Pan claimed that he was not concerned by the doping row, even as his record-breaking performance has led to renewed scrutiny and suspicions about the use of performance-enhancing drugs within the Chinese swimming programme.

In an animated video posted on his Instagram account, Hawke expressed his anger over Pan’s dominant victory.

“Look, I’m angry for a number of reasons,” Hawke said. “I know these people intimately, I’ve studied them for 30 years. I’ve studied this sport. I’ve studied speed. I understand it. I’m an expert in it, that’s what I do, OK. I’m upset right now because you don’t win 100m freestyle by a body length on that field. You just don’t do it.”

Hawke, who represented Australia at the 2000 and 2004 Olympics, said that Pan’s performance was simply “not humanly possible.” He insisted that it was inconceivable for the Chinese swimmer to beat the likes of Kyle Chalmers, David Popovici, and Jack Alexy by such a wide margin.

“That’s not real, you don’t beat that field. Kyle Chalmers, David Popovici, Jack Alexy, you don’t beat those guys by one full body length in 100m freestyle. That’s not humanly possible, OK, so don’t sell it to me, don’t shove it down my throat. It’s not real,” Hawke said.

The Australian coach’s scathing remarks come amid ongoing doping allegations surrounding the Chinese swimming team, though he did not specifically address those recent claims in his criticism of Pan’s world record-breaking swim.