Three months after winning gold for China at the Paris Olympics, world record holder Pan Zhanle is still trying to come to terms with her newfound fame.

Speaking after winning the 100m freestyle at the Swimming World Cup in Singapore on Friday, Pan said he never thought he would get used to being one of his country’s biggest stars.

The world’s fastest swimmer also said he hoped Chinese fans who came to support him and his teammates at the World Cup would also cheer on their foreign counterparts.

“I’ll never get used to having hundreds of fans coming to see me. I want to keep a low profile and get back to where I was in competitions (before I became famous),” Pan said.

He said he might return to that kind of life if he didn’t have to compete because “where we train is closed to the public.”

Pan, now 20 years old, rose to fame by winning three gold medals, three silver and one bronze medal at the Asian Games in 2023.