Michael Palfrey says he hopes a South Korean swimmer wins gold – even though he is rivalling two Australians on night one at the Games.
A coach on the Australian Olympic swimming team has been asked for a please-explain after telling South Korean television reporters he hoped world champion Kim Woo-min would beat Australian duo Sam Short and Elijah Winnington in the men’s 400m freestyle on Saturday .
“I really hope he can win, but ultimately I really hope he swims well,” said Palfrey, who is sharing a room with Short’s coach, Damien Jones, in the Olympic village. Asked by South Korean reporters how he thought the race would play out, Palfrey said: “I really think that last 100 to 200 metres is going to be a bit of a dogfight. It’s going to rough. The boys are going to be there.
Australian head coach Rohan Taylor subsequently addressed the issue with Palfrey on Wednesday. The Australian Olympic Committee was also notified of the comments.According to sources speaking anonymously in order to talk freely, the issue of Palfrey coaching Kim was first raised in the Dolphins camp earlier this year and it has now caused tension within the team’s coaching ranks on the eve of the Games.
“I’ve always consistently seen a steady improvement over the last six months. We’re excited to see how fast Kim can swim.” Australian swimming sources, speaking on the condition of anonymity, said there had been a clear directive from the governing body in March to high-performance staff that ties with international swimmers needed to be cut well before Olympic trials last month to prevent conflicts of interest.
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