Australian Swimming Coach Faces Backlash for Cheering for Rival Swimmer

Team Australia's head coach, Rohan Taylor, has slammed one of his own coaches for publicly supporting a South Korean swimmer who will be competing against Australian athletes at the 2024 Summer Olympics.

In a shocking turn of events, Australian swimming coach Rohan Taylor has come under intense fire for backing an athlete who is set to represent a rival nation at the upcoming 2024 Summer Olympics. The controversy erupted after Taylor publicly expressed his support for South Korean swimmer Kim Woo-min, who is the reigning world champion in the men's 400-meter freestyle event.

Taylor's support for Kim sparked outrage within the Australian swimming community, with many questioning whether it was appropriate for a coach on the Australian team to be rooting for an athlete from another country. Taylor's actions were deemed "un-Australian" by several members of the team, including head coach Taylor himself.

Australian Swimming Coach Faces Backlash for Cheering for Rival Swimmer

In an interview with South Korean television, Palfrey expressed his hope that Kim would win the gold medal in the 400-meter freestyle event. "I really hope he can win, but ultimately I really hope he swims well," Palfrey said. He added, "Go Korea."

Taylor was deeply disappointed by Palfrey's comments and stated that he found it unacceptable for a coach on his team to promote another athlete ahead of Australian athletes. "We confronted him with those details," Taylor said. "He owns that and was taken to task for it. He's very remorseful and we're now dealing with it."

Australian Swimming Coach Faces Backlash for Cheering for Rival Swimmer

Taylor has indicated that he will be meeting with the Australian athletes to discuss whether Palfrey should continue on with the team in Paris. "For me, my priority is the performance of the team, the performance of the athletes," Taylor said. "I need to look at the performance of the team and make a judgment call on that."

Australia has two top contenders in the 400 freestyle: 2023 world champion Sam Short and 2022 world champion Elijah Winnington. While it is not uncommon for coaches to work with athletes from other countries, Taylor emphasized that it was inappropriate for a coach on the Australian staff to express support for another country's swimmer, especially with the Olympics just around the corner.

Australian Swimming Coach Faces Backlash for Cheering for Rival Swimmer

Despite the controversy, Australian swimmer Bronte Campbell, who is competing in her fourth Olympics, said that the incident has hardly made a ripple within the team. "When you come into an Olympic Games, 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 you do that is focusing on the things you can control that are right in front of you."

The Associated Press contributed to this report.