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Ahmed Hafnaoui won gold Sunday in the 400 meters freestyle at the Olympic Games in Tokyo.
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What made Hafnaoui’s victory all the more extraordinary was that he was not expected to win.
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Hafnaoui was the slowest qualifier and had to compete in the outside lane.
The slowest qualifier for a men’s Olympic swimming event shocked the world when he ended up winning gold.
Ahmed Hafnaoui of Team Tunisia was not expected to win the title in the 400 meters freestyle, and even he seemed surprised to win his race Sunday in Tokyo.
The 18-year-old had to compete in the outside line having only narrowly advanced to the championship race.
However, he appeared to peak at the opportune moment as his time of three minutes and 43.36 seconds was enough to pip second-place Jack McLoughlin, of Australia, who he led by 0.16 seconds.
The American swimmer Kieran Smith finished third with a time of three minutes and 43.94 seconds, and therefore won the bronze medal.
Watch Hafnaoui’s celebration right here:
“I just can’t believe it. It’s a dream and it became true,” said Hafnaoui, according to BBC Sport.
“It was great – it was my best race ever.”
Hafnaoui will return to the pool for the 800 meter freestyle as the opening rounds for that event starts Tuesday.
Read the original article on Insider