The 22-year-old French swimmer won four gold medals and a bronze medal in the team event at the Olympic Games. A record unmatched in France.
When Léon Marchand dives in, France holds its breath.
The 22-year-old French swimmer won four gold medals and a bronze medal in the team events at the Olympic Games. A record unequalled in France.
“I haven’t realised how much I’ve done yet. I know what I’ve done in the water, I know what I’ve done in terms of performance. I’ve also got a lot of statistics. There’s no Frenchman who’s ever done that before,” said the swimmer in an interview with journalist Anne-Sophie Lapix.
In the stands, in the fan zones and behind the screens, the extraordinary performances of the four-time Olympic champion gave rise to scenes of jubilation.
At Club France, where a staggering 20,000 fans had gathered to witness history, when Marchand secured his fourth gold medal, the eruption of joy was overwhelming.
The crowd’s roar was so powerful that even the security guards momentarily abandoned their posts, captivated by the live broadcast on the giant screen.
“He is a fish! No, he is better than a fish!” exclaimed Moussa Keita, one of the guards, to a colleague, as he joined the throng in recording the moment on his phone.
Other events were interrupted during his races as the public cheered him on from a distance, their eyes glued to their screens.
The swimmer, for his part, insists that he has remained in his bubble and not been fazed by the new found fame.
“I had a lot of races so it really allowed me to stay focused on recovering, trying to get as much sleep as possible and simply being ready the next day” Marchand said.
“I did fourteen races in all, so I was really focused. I was in my bubble and I’m not afraid to come out of it,” the french sensation says.
Another swimming legend in the making?
After the Tokyo Olympics, Leon joined coach Bob Bowman and former mentor to Michael Phelps, in Arizona. Since then, his legendary strokes and exceptional recovery abilities have improved and are now being applauded.
“I want to say thank you dad mum. It’s incredible but my body regenerates very quickly. So it’s also because I’ve worked really hard and when I recover, I don’t swim slowly. I swim very fast at a fairly high pace to reduce my lactate”, explains Leon.
Marchand’s accomplishments have resonated at the highest levels of French society. After his race on Friday, he was greeted by President Emmanuel Macron, who later praised him on X.
“The impossible isn’t French!” Macron wrote in French. “Four home gold medals and a new Olympic record — it’s historic. It’s Léon Marchand.”
Marchand’s Olympic journey in Paris ended Sunday, where he swam the breaststroke leg for France in the 4×100 medley relay. The team finished third, adding a bronze medal to his four individual golds.
After the excitement of the Paris Olympics, the French swimming prodigy says he plans to go on holiday. Shortly after, he’d be back in the pool, with his sights set on the Los Angeles 2028 games.
