Hours after winning two gold medals, French swimming star Léon Marchand was back in the pool Thursday morning, performing in front of his excited fans.
Marchand, who has been a standout athlete for France at the Games, had a performance reminiscent of Michael Phelps on Wednesday night. He chased down world-record holder and defending Olympic champion Kristóf Milák to win the 200-meter butterfly in 1 minute 51.21 seconds, and then won the 200 breaststroke about two hours later with a time of 2:05.85.
On Thursday, Marchand returned for the preliminary heats of the 200 individual medley. He swam comfortably and recorded the third fastest time to advance.
Daiya Seto of Japan posted a time of 1:57.48, with Marchand coming in third at 1:57.86.
Marchand now has three gold medals in individual events in Paris and will aim for a fourth in the final 200 individual medley on Friday night.
This might complete his medal tally in Paris before his enthusiastic, chanting, flag-waving fans at the La Defense Arena. It is uncertain if he will participate in any relay events for France, which is not expected to be a strong contender in those races.
Getting the fourth gold might be straightforward, but his American coach Bob Bowman — who previously coached Michael Phelps to 23 Olympic gold medals — believes the next phase might be more challenging for the 22-year-old.
“He’s gotta survive the success,” Bowman said after Wednesday’s two-gold performance. “He’s gotta come out of what’s next, and he has no idea.”
Bowman, who coached Marchand at Arizona State before moving to coach at Texas, mentioned that Marchand, now a professional, will have to handle increased attention from sponsors and fans back home.
“I know exactly what’s next,” Bowman said. “Find his way back to a pool in Austin, Texas, and start training again. That will be the challenge.”
