The Aussie swimmer breeds beardies and blue tongues.
When Olympic gold medalist Kyle Chalmers isn't beating the competition in the swimming pool, he is tending to his blue-tongued skinks (Tiliqua scincoides intermedia) and bearded dragons (Pogona vitticeps).
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Blue-tongued skinks, which are called blue tongues in Australia, are a popular species in the pet hobby.
Chalmers, who won Olympic gold in the 100 meter freestyle at the Rio Games in 2016, took to loving reptiles after his grandfather, Malcolm Bagnell introduced him to them, according to Adelaide Now.
“I was pretty excited about it to be honest, it’s one of my huge passions and it makes me happy to talk about them,” Chalmers told Adelaide Now. “I’ve had every pet, I’m an animal lover. Now I’m old enough to make my own decisions and to get rare blue tongues that I’m interested in is pretty awesome.”
But for now, he is training for the Commonwealth Games that start April 4. You can check out his extensive collection of blue-tongued skinks and bearded dragons on his Instagram page, adls_bluetongues.
