France’s swimming star, Leon Marchand, has restored the country’s prestige in competitive swimming by winning the gold medal in the 400-meter individual medley at the Paris Olympic Games. This victory marks the first time since 2012 that France has celebrated a gold medalist in swimming. Marchand’s performance was nothing short of spectacular.

At just 22 years old, Marchand clocked an impressive time of 4 minutes and 02.95 seconds, securing his victory with a margin of almost six seconds over Japan’s Tomoyuki Matsushita, who finished in second place, and American Carson Foster, who took home the bronze. Marchand’s time is the second-fastest in history for this event.

Entering as a heavy favorite, Marchand had set a new world record last year by swimming the 400m individual medley in an astonishing 4:02.50. With the roaring support of the crowd at La Defense Arena in Paris, he took an early lead and maintained it throughout the race. He emerged from the water first after a powerful butterfly segment, and it was particularly his impressive 100-meter backstroke that left his competitors far behind.

Trained by the legendary Bob Bowman, who previously coached Michael Phelps, Marchand’s gold victory marks France’s first gold in the pool since the London Olympics, where the country won a total of four gold medals. At the last Games in Tokyo in 2021, France managed only a single swimming medal—a silver won by Florent Manaudou in the 50-meter freestyle.

Having already earned five world championship titles, Marchand now looks forward to competing in both the 200-meter medley and the 200-meter butterfly, aiming to build on his growing fame.

Additionally, there was excitement in the men’s 100-meter breaststroke, where Italy’s Nicolo Martinenghi clinched the gold, denying Britain’s Adam Peaty his third consecutive gold medal. Peaty had to settle for silver, while American Nic Fink finished with the same time in a joint bronze.

In the women’s 100-meter butterfly, Torri Huske secured gold after a dramatic finish, defeating her American teammate and world record holder Gretchen Walsh. Walsh was ahead at the turn, but Huske showed remarkable strength, winning with a time of 55.59 seconds, while Walsh took silver and China’s Zhang Yufei earned bronze. Huske’s victory adds to a history of unpredictability in this event, as there has never been a repeat winner since the inaugural competition in 1956.

Marchand and the other winners at the Paris Olympic Games demonstrate that competition in swimming is more intense than ever, and that French swimmers are once again claiming their place among the world’s elite.