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Leon Marchand has been making headlines ever since his debut at the Tokyo Olympics. The 19-year-old prodigy finished sixth in the 200m medley, 14th in the 200m butterfly, and 18th in the 200m IM (individual medley). Later, at the 2022 World Championships in Budapest, he set a new French record in the 400m individual medley, finishing the race in 4:04.28 and winning the gold medal in the process.
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With this record, he became the only swimmer other than Michael Phelps to crack 4:05 in the LCM 400 IM. The teenager is just 0.44 sec short of the world record set by Phelps. Coincidentally, Leon Marchand trains under Phelps' coach, Bob Bowman, at Arizona State University, and Phelps was all praise for Marchand.
Michael Phelps wants Leon Marchand to challenge his 400 IM record
In an interview with NBC Sports, Michael Phelps spoke about world records that could be broken in coming times. Phelps said that he thinks the 400 IM record will be broken.
“I’m excited to see a kid come up and challenge that record. That’s what I want. I would love that.”
Phelps never got a chance to compete in a home Olympics and is jealous that Leon Marchand will get to do so at the upcoming 2024 Paris Olympics.
“To be able to swim here, on your home soil, I will say I am jealous,” Phelps said.
However, he hopes that the record will stand for another year. If the record lasts till June 2023, Phelps will break the record for holding an individual world record in an individual Olympic event for the longest period. He first broke the 400 IM record in 2002 and has held the world record ever since, having lowered the mark eight times after breaking it for the first time.
“Hopefully, maybe fingers crossed, I’m going to be greedy and try to keep that record for one more year,” he said in the same interview.
Who is Leon Marchand?
Leon Marchand has attracted attention with his spectacular performances over the past two years. It would not be wrong to say that swimming is in his genes since his parents were also professional swimmers. Born to Olympians Xavier Marchand and Celine Bonnet, Leon looks forward to clinching the missing Olympic medal in the family.
He is a French record holder in the long course of a 200m individual medley, 200m butterfly, and 200m breaststroke. Notably, he was faster than his dad ever was in 200 IM.
Leon Marchand is now France's potential medal contender at the 2024 Paris Olympics.
“My objective is to become Olympic champion,'' he said, according to Olympics' website. “Whether in Paris [2024], or Los Angeles [2028], that is the main long-term goal.”
As part of Arizona State University, Leon won several NCAA titles, namely gold in the 200 yard IM and 200 yard breaststroke. He also won silver in the 400 yard IM and 4*100 yard freestyle.
The youngster has achieved several laurels for his country at a very young age and has even broken records in the process. Fans await to see when Leon Marchand will take down Michael Phelps' 400 IM record in the coming years.
