Olympic swimming sensation Leon Marchand still has ‘a lot to do' in the sport

Straits Times

2 days ago

Frenchman Leon Marchand was king of the pool in the Singapore leg of the World Aquatics Swimming World Cup in November 2024.
SINGAPORE – Used to delivering lights-out performances on the biggest stage, nothing really fazes four-gold Olympic champion Leon Marchand.
The lights did go out briefly during the press conference for the World Aquatics Championships (WCH) at the WCH Arena on July 26, but the 23-year-old hardly batted an eyelid as he fielded a question about what motivates him these days after becoming a swimming sensation at Paris 2024.
He said: 'I'm excited for worlds, I want PBs (personal bests) in every single one of my races. Of course, I want to break world records in the next few years. I don't know when that's going to happen, but I still have a lot to do in the swimming world.'
In a star-studded press conference boasting the likes of world and Olympic champions in Hubert Kos (Hungary), Australia's Cameron McEvoy and Lani Pallister, there was little doubt that Marchand is still the man of the hour.
With the first three questions lobbed at the Frenchmen, even the moderator had to step in to gently ban queries for him for five minutes.
That allowed sprint king McEvoy and 800m freestyle upstart Pallister to talk about the rejuvenation of the Australian team as they work towards the 2028 Olympics in Los Angeles, while backstroke specialist Kos talked about his 'science experiment' of adding individual medleys to his programme.
For Marchand, he admitted that life will never be the same again after
his Paris feat last August , when he won a stunning four golds – all in championship record times – at his home Olympics.
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Since his triumphs, he has lapped up the attention and adulation in France. 'It's been both – a lot of positives, a lot of negatives,' he said.
'My life in France changed a lot. I have to plan things. I can't just go on my own in the city and get some bread. I have to do different things before, after, and during. It's been a lot to handle at first.
'I also enjoy the positives that happened to me after that. I'm getting used to it, I know how to handle it better, I know how to say no better.'
While he
claimed the men's individual ranking title at the short-course World Aquatics Swimming World Cup in Singapore in November, things did not go his way after that as he dislocated his shoulder in December and fractured his rib in early 2025. He resumed training in March and returned to competition a month later.
Acknowledging that this is a 'transition year' post-Olympics, Marchand has trimmed his punishing programme – he has dropped the 200m breaststroke and butterfly and will focus on only the 200m and 400m individual medleys (IM), as well as the relays in Singapore.
A scaled-back schedule will also give him a better shot at taking out Ryan Lochte's long-standing world record in the 200m IM – the American clocked 1min 54sec in 2011.
Marchand, who holds the 400m IM world record, said: 'I'm really excited to do less than usual, just to see how fast I can go in the 200m IM. I'm just not used to starting on a Wednesday instead of the first day, which is good because I can finally cheer for my teammates.'
Other swimmers who are on the hunt for glory include Germany's Florian Wellbrock, who won four open water swimming golds here and is gunning for the 1,500m freestyle title in the WCH Arena.
The 27-year-old, who won a gold and bronze in the 10km open water and 1,500m freestyle in Tokyo 2020, admitted that the Paris Olympics 'were tough for me' as he returned home empty-handed.
Noting that he considered retiring after that disappointment, he said: 'But after eight weeks of recovering, I had the feeling that I wanted to be back in the water, with my group, with my coach. We decided, ok, let's try and go all the way to LA 2028. I did a lot of work with a new mental coach, and I think I found a good way to be back. It's so nice to be back on top of the podium.'
Swiss Noe Ponti wants to add a world championship medal to his haul of Olympic, European Championships and short-course world championships titles.
The 24-year-old, who holds the short-course world records in the 50m and 100m butterfly, said: 'The only pressure I have comes from myself. I want to finally win a medal at a long-course world championship. It's not as easy as you think, a lot of factors have to come together.'
The swimming competition kicks off on July 27 and while most athletes will be busy training or competing, Marchand will be making the most of his extra rest days.
When quizzed by The Sunday Times on what he plans to do in Singapore, he said: 'I was here with my brother the last time and we visited a lot of places. Gardens By The Bay was really nice, and if I have time, I'll do that again just to breathe some nice air and see nice things.
'It's important for us to see more than just the pool and the hotel. I like Singapore and I'm excited to be back.'