The great Chinese swimmer Pan Zhanle, the reigning Olympic champion in the 100-meter freestyle event and the current world record holder in this distance, has once again made a respectful statement about our champion David Popovici.
After spending over 2 weeks in Romania during a training camp this summer, Zhanle spoke again about the advice he received from champion David Popovici, following his outstanding performance at the Asian Games.
The 22-year-old athlete says that the time spent with David has greatly helped him and made him better understand how to mentally prepare for competitions, specifically how to handle the immense pressures of competitions.
"In the past, I paid a lot of attention to my times in each training session. If I felt like I didn't train well on a particular day, I thought that meant I wouldn't swim well in the competition either. But, training with him, I saw that he doesn't deliberately chase times in the same way. Regardless of how he feels on a certain day, he follows through with the entire preparation plan. As long as his times are good enough or consistent, it's sufficient for him," Pan Zhanle explained to the olympics.com portal.
I have to progress every time. I was young and fearless back then in Paris at the 2024 Olympics. I was extremely determined to win the title in the 100m freestyle. Looking back, I think I would have done anything to win that gold medal. My results in Paris were so good, and then suddenly, I couldn't find that version of myself anymore. It hurt a little," the athlete confessed at the end of the aforementioned interview.
Pan Zhanle had an exceptional performance at the Asian Games, where he triumphed in the 100m freestyle event and in the 4x100m freestyle, 4x100m medley, and 4x200m freestyle relays.
D.A.