China's state media, athletes, and netizens have united in support of Olympic swimming champion Pan Zhanle following criticism from an Australian swim commentator who claimed his world record in the 100 meters freestyle was "not humanly possible."

Pan broke his own 100 meters freestyle world record, reducing the previous mark he set at the World Championships in Doha by 0.40 seconds, defeating rivals including Australia's Kyle Chalmers and Romania's David Popovici. The 19-year-old Pan clocked 46.60 seconds to secure China's first swimming gold medal at the Paris Olympic Games. The China Daily reported that Pan "completed rigorous doping test programs prior to and during the games with zero positive results," adding that Pan had undergone 21 doping tests from May to July before the games.

In an interview, Pan emphasized his dedication to fair competition and detailed his intensive training regimen. "I did a lot of aerobics and endurance training to strengthen my push and kick in the final split. We have also adopted a scientific underwater monitoring and analyzing system to review our techniques and strokes, so that we can train better and more effectively," he said.

Australian coach and commentator Brett Hawke sparked controversy by posting on Instagram that "It's not humanly possible to beat that field" and described the swim as "not real life. Not in that pool, against that field." Hawke's comments circulated widely on China's Weibo platform, drawing reactions from users who saw the remarks as backhanded praise. "It's so cool to see them incompetent, angry, and breaking their defenses," one user commented. Another added, "He is praising us, saying that position is impossible but sorry we did it."

The Chinese swim team has faced intense scrutiny since revelations in April that 23 of its swimmers tested positive for a banned heart medication in 2021 but were still allowed to compete at the Tokyo Olympics. The World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) accepted the findings of a Chinese investigation, which attributed the results to contamination from a hotel kitchen, and an independent review supported WADA's handling of the case. A World Aquatics audit found no mismanagement or cover-up by the governing body. Pan's name was not among those listed in reports by the New York Times and German broadcaster ARD.

Chinese swimmer Zhang Yufei, who won the bronze medal in the women's 200-meter butterfly final, addressed questions about Pan during a press conference, further bolstering the support for her teammate.