An Australian swimming coach recently came under fire after supporting an athlete who will compete for another country at the 2024 Summer Olympics.
Head coach Rohan Taylor has called Michael Palfrey's public support for South Korean swimmer Kim Woo-min “un-Australian”. Taylor also suggested Palfrey might be forced to return to Australia before Olympic swimming competition begins this weekend.
This year, the swimmers will compete at the Arena de la Défense, which is located in the western part of the Paris suburbs. “I'm very disappointed. Extremely disappointed,” Taylor said. “It's not acceptable for a coach of our team to promote another athlete over our athletes.”
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Rohan Taylor, head coach of Team Australia, speaks to the media during a press conference of the Australian swimming team at the Main Press Centre ahead of the Paris 2024 Olympic Games on July 25, 2024 in Paris, France. (Lintao Zhang/Getty Images)
Palfrey is part of Australia's Olympic team, overseeing the preparations of three swimmers and working with a fourth athlete. Before that, however, he coached Kim, the men's 400m freestyle world champion from South Korea.
In an interview with South Korean television, Palfrey said she was backing Kim to win gold in that event on the opening day of the swimming competition.
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“I really hope he can win, but I definitely hope he swims well,” Palfrey said. He added: “Let's go Korea.”
Taylor said Palfrey later apologised for what he called an error in judgement but added that he would meet with the Australian athletes to discuss whether the coach should continue with the team in Paris.
“For me, my priority is the performance of the team, the performance of the athletes,” Taylor said. “I have to look at the performance of the team and make a decision on that.”
Kim Woo-min of Team Republic of Korea celebrates after winning gold in the Men's 400m Freestyle Final on day 10 of the Doha 2024 World Aquatics Championships at Aspire Dome on February 11, 2024 in Doha, Qatar. (Quinn Rooney/Getty Images)
Australia has two leading contenders for the 400m freestyle gold medal in 2023 world champion Sam Short and 2022 world champion Elijah Winnington.
It is not uncommon for coaches to work with athletes from other countries. One of America's top coaches, Bob Bowman, leads a training group that includes French star Léon Marchand.
Australian swimmers and coaches check out the pool at La Defense Arena ahead of the 2024 Summer Olympics, Wednesday, July 24, 2024, in Paris, France. (AP Photo/Ashley Landis)
However, given the Olympics were approaching, Taylor said, it was totally unacceptable for an Australian staff coach to express support for a swimmer from another country.
“We confronted him with those details,” Taylor said. “He acknowledges that and was reprimanded for it. He is very remorseful and we are now dealing with it.”
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But Australian swimmer Bronte Campbell, competing in her fourth Olympics, said the controversy had “barely made a dent” within the powerful team.
“When you're competing in the Olympics, it's all about protecting your energy. It's a big, long, emotional competition,” she said. “Everyone knows what they have to do. We always talk about focusing on performance first. The way to do that is to focus on the things you can control and that are right in front of you.”
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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