For his entry into the running at the French Championships, Léon Marchand struck very hard. The new tricolor swimming phenomenon broke his own French record in the 200m breaststroke, approaching the world record less than a second. The 21-year-old Frenchman, big attraction of the Breton week, marked the first day of competition, winning in 2 min 06 sec 59/100, just 64 hundredths from the world record of Australian Zac Stubblety-Cook ( 2 min 05 sec 95/100). “I wanted to set the world record!”, admitted Marchand at the exit of the basin, he who always tries to set himself challenges.
“In the end I’m not far (…) It’s a satisfaction because all the work I’ve done pays off, I feel better in breaststroke than last year so it’s great.” While he had few references over the distance, he set the fourth best time in history and improved his previous French record by more than two seconds.
His time is obviously enough to achieve the minimum required by the French Federation for the Worlds in five weeks, but the Toulousain has already announced that he will not compete in this race in Japan, the schedule of the events not allowing him to. “It’s infuriating,” he said. “It’s really bad for me because with weather like this, I could be one of the best, but I’m saving it for next year,” he added, taking the date for the Paris Olympics, of which he should be the big star.
The Frenchman will in any case have many other opportunities to qualify for the world meeting, in particular in the 200 and 400 m medley, races in which he is the reigning world champion. The world record in the 400m medley, held by legend Michael Phelps, could also be his next target. He will also compete in the 200m freestyle as well as the 100 and 200m butterfly. “In breaststroke, I don’t draw too much on my reserves in general because my cardio doesn’t go up too much, but it was still a very tough race on the muscles,” he said. “There I have no more legs so I will have to recover well! It’s the first day, there are five left so we have to stay focused.
Two years after his last appearance in a French basin, Marchand, who trains in the United States, was first greeted by polite applause from the Breton public, before capsizing the stands during the last length, while he was still ahead of the world record. Opposite, the swimmers’ stand was also in turmoil to witness the performance of their new headliner. “In the first hundred meters I couldn’t hear too much (the public), but it’s true that in the third 50 I heard everyone who was encouraging me so I took the strength of the public and I tried to push,” he said. In the absence of Marchand on this 200m breaststroke, France will be represented for the Japanese Worlds by Antoine Marc, who also achieved the minima.
He was notably imitated by Charlotte Bonnet, who reassured herself in the 200m medley, or even Marie Wattel, victorious and qualified in the 100m butterfly. “I said to myself that it was necessary to put the small dishes in the big ones, to make as if it was an Olympic final. And frankly, I’m really happy with the time because I’ve come a long way,” said the Northerner.
