The FIFA World Cup has never just been about football, but it has been a running record of power, politics and shifting dominance, written every four years since 1930.
At the Paris 2024 Olympics, China’s Pan Zhanle demolished his world record in the 100‑metre freestyle, and in the months since, Romania’s David Popovici and America’s Jack Alexy have continued to push the event into unexplored territory.
