French swimming sensation Léon Marchand made Olympic history on July 31, 2024, by winning two gold medals in the span of just two hours at the Paris 2024 Olympics. The 22-year-old clinched victory in both the 200m butterfly and 200m breaststroke events, setting new Olympic records in each.In the 200m butterfly, Marchand overtook defending champion and world record holder Kristof Milak of Hungary in the final 25 meters, finishing with a time of 1:51.21. Less than two hours later, he dominated the 200m breaststroke, winning with a time of 2:05.85. This unprecedented achievement is particularly remarkable as the two events require vastly different skills and techniques.Marchand’s victories have electrified the French crowd, with his coach Bob Bowman, who previously guided Michael Phelps, praising the performance as ‘probably the best double I’ve seen in the history of this sport’. Even Phelps himself was reportedly ‘in trance’ watching Marchand’s victory in the 200m butterfly.With these two golds, Marchand now has three gold medals in these Olympics, having previously won the 400m individual medley and setting a new world record. Despite his success, Marchand remains focused on his upcoming events, including the 200m individual medley scheduled for August 2.In other swimming events, Chinese swimmer Pan Zhanle set a new world record in the 100m freestyle with a time of 46.40 seconds, while American Katie Ledecky secured her seventh individual Olympic gold medal in the 1500m freestyle.
Key points
- Léon Marchand won gold medals in both 200m butterfly and 200m breaststroke within two hours, setting Olympic records in both events.
- Marchand’s achievement is unprecedented in Olympic history, drawing comparisons to swimming legend Michael Phelps.
- With three gold medals so far, Marchand continues to focus on upcoming events, including the 200m individual medley.
