France’s Leon Marchand made history with a golden double in front of an enthusiastic home crowd, while American Katie Ledecky won her eighth Olympic gold medal, setting a new record, in an epic evening of swimming in Paris.
In a remarkable, deafening atmosphere, Marchand achieved the rare feat of winning two gold medals in the same swimming session.
The 22-year-old first overtook reigning champion and world record holder Kristof Milak of Hungary to win the 200m butterfly title. Less than two hours later, he returned to the pool to comfortably win the 200m breaststroke, securing his third gold medal of the Games.
No one had ever achieved a double victory in the men’s 200-meter butterfly breaststroke, and Marchand won both times in Olympic record time.
As the first swimmer since 1976 to win two individual gold medals in one evening at the Olympic Games, the figurehead of these Games established himself as a global superstar of the sport.
“When you talk about Michael Phelps, when you talk about Ian Thorpe, you have to talk about Leon Marchand now because I think that is one of the best things we have ever seen,” British Olympic champion Adrian Moorhouse said on BBC television.
Earlier, the 27-year-old Ledecky, who long ago achieved cult status, dominated her opponents and defended her title in the 1500m freestyle in Olympic record time, equalling fellow countrywoman Jenny Thompson as the most successful swimmer in the history of the Games.
For Ledecky, it was her 12th medal overall, equaling Thompson’s record of eight gold, three silver and one bronze medals between 1992 and 2004.
And to round off a breathtaking swimming session, China’s Pan Zhanle won the 100 m freestyle in a world record time of 46.40 seconds, ensuring that he was not forgotten in what is normally the highest discipline in the sport.
“Prince of the Pool” – who is Leon Marchand and how did he do it?
The 15,000-seat indoor arena has been called the loudest and best indoor swimming pool in recent times. Tickets for Marchand from Toulouse were a hit in town.
But this one was very special: each of Marchand’s breaststroke strokes was accompanied by a loud roar of “Allez” from the crowd, who had come with flags, horns and masks of their hero.
His first victory with a time of 1 minute 51.71 seconds was thrilling. He was almost a body length behind in the final corner, but overtook Milak, considered the greatest butterfly racer in history, in the final stretch in front of the crowd.
Marchand had his first medal ceremony before his next final, but instead of joining Milak and bronze medalist Ilya Kharun of Canada on a lap of honour, he quickly disappeared to recover.
He then completed a procession to win in 2:05.85, beating defending Australian champion Zac Stubblety-Cook by almost a second, and soon praise was pouring in on social media.
French President Emmanuel Macron called him a “merchant of dreams” and a “legend,” while soccer world champion Antoine Griezmann called Marchand the “little prince of the pool.”
Marchand has been considered a rising star in the swimming world since he sent a letter to Bob Bowman, the former coach of US swimming star Phelps, asking him to take him under his wing – a request that the highly respected American duly accepted.
Last year, Marchand, known in Japan as “the new monster,” broke Phelps’ last remaining world record in the 400m individual medley, confirming his status as an elite all-rounder.
Here, too, he won the 400-meter individual medley title on Sunday, but in these victories on Wednesday, for which the schedule was changed to give him a chance at further glory, he beat specialists in their swimming style.
“A double Olympic champion in one session – not even Michael Phelps has managed that,” said BBC commentator and former Olympic swimmer Andy Jameson.
“The audacity. I can’t believe he even tried, let alone won both.”
The evening ended with a final performance of the French national anthem, but it felt like the party continued late into the night.
Marchand has a day off on Thursday before returning on Friday for his fourth event – the 200m individual medley, where he will compete against Britain’s Tom Dean and Duncan Scott.
Legendary Ledecky makes the eighth
Ledecky, who revolutionized long-distance swimming, was seven seconds faster than she was in Tokyo, leading to the belief that the American will somehow get even better.
When she won in Paris with a time of 15 minutes 30.02 seconds, no other swimmer could be seen on television.
Ledecky won her first gold in London in 2012 as a 15-year-old and took four more in Rio de Janeiro before winning two more in Tokyo. Only Phelps has won more gold medals in swimming than her.
The 27-year-old will also compete in the 800-meter freestyle on Friday, a discipline in which she is a three-time Olympic champion and world record holder.
Another victory would mean that Ledecky would equal the record held by gymnast Larisa Latynina, the most successful Olympian ever, who won nine gold medals for the Soviet Union in the 1950s and 1960s.
