SA lad Kyle Chalmers sent his Adelaide schoolmates into meltdown when he won gold in the Olympics 100m freestyle final – and his principal admits the win shocked even his closest supporters.
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Chalmers is a year 12 student at Immanuel College where fellow students were glued to the TV watching their friend swim the race of his life.
When he won, the Immanuel students couldn’t contain themselves.
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When Immanuel principal Kevin Richardson joined FIVEAA’s Rowey and Bicks on Thursday, he said watching Chalmers win was an emotional moment for his students.
“How rare is it for students to be able to have their classmate they’ve been studying with – some of them training with, some of them swimming with – winning a gold medal,” Mr Richardson said.
“I think the kids hoped he’d make the final. Then we hoped he’d win a medal, but I must admit even his biggest supporters I don’t think realised he’d probably win gold.
“When he touched the wall, I’ve never seen a more emotional experience. We had kids crying, we had kids cheering, it just went off.
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“I think most of them wanted me to do a Bob Hawke,” Mr Richardson said, “but I did say, ‘Right, you’ve learnt one lesson today about hard work and commitment, now I want you to go away and learn at least one more in your classroom.’
“A bit harsh I know.”
Chalmers, 18, was in seventh spot when he turned for the final 50m of the race and stormed home to win.
“It’s still sinking in”, he said after the race. “I faded towards the end and I was a bit worried, but very happy now.”
“Unbelievable, I’m only 18 so it was pretty daunting but I knew I had to stick to my guns.”
