- Ariarne Titmus’ diehard fanatic gets preferential treatment in Paris
- She pointed to her manicured yellow nails as the reason for her success.
- The wild theory was widely dismissed online and was first posted on Reddit.
A keen swimming fan has bizarrely suggested Australian pool queen Ariarne Titmus has enjoyed a distinct advantage over her rivals at the Paris Games – after painting her nails yellow.
Accessing the American social news website RedditThe fan asked: “How are nails like this allowed? I’ve seen how close the (Olympic) races have been.”
Alongside her bizarre question was a picture of Australian star Titmus and her elegant nails, which have been impossible to miss at La Defense Arena.
The responses were mixed, with one sports fan agreeing that Titmus has been given preferential treatment.
“The nails act as oars and give her an unfair advantage,” one fan argued.
Another posted: ‘I like it… gold (colour) to match his medals.’
The general consensus was that Titmus is free to compete with acrylic or gel nails if she so chooses, and that’s not why she already has two gold medals at the Games.
There is also no rule prohibiting athletes from entering the water with painted nails.
A swimming fan has bizarrely suggested that Australian pool queen Ariarne Titmus has enjoyed a distinct advantage over her rivals at the Paris Games, after painting her nails yellow (pictured)
In an interview with US social news website Reddit, the supporter asked: “How are nails like this allowed? I’ve seen how close the elections have been.”
This fan felt Titmus was a victim of his own success, stating, “You know you’re good when you start getting cheating accusations.”
Titmus has been a standout at the Paris Games, winning the 400m freestyle, the 4x200m freestyle relay and also finishing second in the 200m freestyle (pictured)
“You know you’re good when they start throwing cheating accusations at you,” one fan said.
Another spoke for many when he sarcastically posted in response: ‘Yes, because it’s Ariane’s nails that make the difference… Talk about splitting hairs!’
Although Titmus put on a heroic performance in the pool, she came under fire when she denounced the “ridiculous” conditions inside the Olympic village.
The 23-year-old did not hold back when asked if she was disappointed at not breaking her world record when she won back-to-back gold medals in the 400m freestyle.
“It probably wasn’t the moment I thought I was capable of, but living in the Olympic Village makes it difficult to perform,” he admitted in an interview.
“It’s definitely not built for high performance, so it’s about who can really hold it together in the mind.”
On Friday night, Titmus’ quest to once again upset American rival Katie Ledecky begins in the heats of the 800m freestyle.
The action starts at 7:40pm AEST.
