Becoming a national icon at just 22 years old, ASU and French swimmer Léon Marchand went into the Paris 2024 Olympics with his sights on medaling in each event he was going to compete in and he turned those dreams into a reality.
Thank you for reading this post, don't forget to subscribe!Marchand did not just win one gold medal, but three after winning the men’s 400-meter individual medley on Sunday before winning two more on Wednesday, the 200-meter butterfly and 200-meter breaststroke.
MAGNIFICANT MARCHAND! ????????
Léon Marchand is now a two-time Olympic Gold medalist setting an OLYMPIC RECORD 1:51.21 to claim his second gold medal this week! ????????#ForksUp /// #OlympiansMadeHere /// #ParisOlympics pic.twitter.com/R1TMagRfkq
— Sun Devil Swim/Dive (@ASUSwimDive) July 31, 2024
TRULY REMARKABLE!!@leon_marchand sets his third Olympic record of the week for his third gold medal, winning the 200m Breaststroke in 2:05.85!!#ForksUP /// #OlympiansMadeHere /// #ParisOlympics2024 pic.twitter.com/k07TYhx8I7
— Sun Devil Swim/Dive (@ASUSwimDive) July 31, 2024
In the 200 fly, Marchand set an Olympic record time for the event, 1:51.21. He just edged out Hungarian superstar Kristóf Milák by 54 milliseconds, 1:51.75. Medaling in his first Olympic event, Marchand’s ASU teammate Ilya Kharun clocked in at 1:52.80, winning the first bronze for both himself and Canada in the 200 fly ever.
It was a nail-biting finish for Marchand to triumph over Milák, just getting over the line with no room for error. Milák was the reigning gold medal winner of the 200 fly at the Tokyo 2020 Olympics and had the fastest time in either of the two semifinals in Paris, 1:52.72, but Marchand was able to pull through.
Just a few hours later, the French sensation Marchand returned to the pool for the 200 breaststroke and was victorious once again, making Olympic history again with the event’s quickest time ever of 2:05.85. He beat Australian Zac Stubblety-Cook (2:06.79) who finished second and Netherlands’ Caspar Corbeau (2:07.90) in third.
With both victories on Wednesday, the Sun Devils’ star became the first athlete to win multiple events on the same night since 1976. East Germany women’s swimmer Kornelia Ender was the last person to achieve this feat, marking how monumental Marchand’s display in France has been this year.
Continuing to establish himself as one of the best swimmers in the world at such a young age, the Toulouse native has become a global phenom around the world after this historic run. Adding on top of the fact that he is performing on a high level in front of his home nation France, Marchand is making his country proud.
Not done yet, Marchand will swim for one last time at the Olympics this year in the 200m individual medley. The heats of this event to advance to the semifinal begin on Thursday morning at approximately 2:56 a.m. PT.
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Reporter Alec Cipollini covers ASU Athletics, Phoenix Mercury and more for Burn City Sports. You can follow him on his X account, @AlecCipollini
