ROCKET: The reigning two-time world swimming champion is in brilliant form, as evidenced by his triumphs this week at the college championships contested in the United States, with three NCAA records at stake
The conquest of America could not be more conclusive for Léon Marchand. The French swimming prodigy, who is studying and training in the United States, has just set three NCAA records in Minneapolis. During the University Championships, the 20-year-old Toulousain won the 200-yard medley (182.88 m) in 1’36″34 on Thursday, before doing it again on Friday in the 400-yard medley in 3’28″82, while no athlete had previously gone below the 3 minutes 30 mark.
To complete his dream week, Léon Marchand also set the fastest time in NCAA history on Saturday in the 200-yard breaststroke, in 1’46″91. A time that contrasts with the one he had signed in the same event a year ago, in 1’48”20. This shows the progress made by the double world champion in Budapest last summer (over 400 m medley and 200 m medley).
Trained by Bob Bowman in parallel with his computer studies at the University of Arizona State, Léon Marchand has everything to delight at the next World Swimming Championships, which will be held in four months in Fukuoka (Japan). Before being one of the most anticipated French stars for the Paris Olympics next year.
