In addition to the thrilling 200m butterfly final featuring Martin Espernberger, the Wednesday evening session of the swimming events in Paris provided a world record and four other exciting races – each with its own unique story.
First, let’s talk about Katie Ledecky. With her victory in the 1500m freestyle, she became the most successful female swimmer in Olympic history. But that’s not all – Marchand also had a double triumph in the 200m breaststroke. And let’s not forget about the thrilling 100m freestyle final, where Sarah Sjöström and Pan Zhanle emerged victorious.
Pan from China set a fabulous world record of 46.40 seconds in the 100m freestyle, shaving off four tenths of a second from his previous record. This remarkable achievement makes him the first to set a world record in the La Defense Arena during these championships. And guess what? Pan will turn 20 on Sunday!
The competitors in the adjacent lanes were left astounded by Pan’s performance. The second-place finisher, Kyle Chalmers from the USA, trailed behind with a time of 47.48 seconds, more than a second slower. The 19-year-old David Popovici from Romania finished third with a time of 47.49 seconds.
Sjöström Surprises Herself
The almost 31-year-old Sarah Sjöström surprised even herself with her triumph. This was her fifth Olympic Games, and after winning gold in the 100m butterfly in Rio eight years ago, she claimed yet another Olympic victory. Interestingly, she wasn’t even planning to compete in this event. Her coach had to convince her otherwise. In the end, she outperformed Torri Huske from the USA (52.29 seconds) and Siobhan Bernadette Haughey from Hong Kong (52.33 seconds) with a remarkable time of 52.16 seconds. “I have no words for this, it’s incredible!” exclaimed Sjöström.
Ledecky and Marchand also made history that evening. US swimming sensation Ledecky repeated her triumph in the 1500m freestyle from Tokyo, which was the first time this distance was included in the women’s Olympic program.
Marchand, on the other hand, achieved a phenomenal double win in both the 200m butterfly and 200m breaststroke events. Not even the legendary Michael Phelps dared to attempt this double. The 22-year-old Marchand, who is currently coached by Bob Bowman, Phelps’ former coach, seems to be unlimited in his potential. Although he fell behind the world record pace set by Chinese swimmer Qin Haiyang in the last meters, missing it by only 0.37 seconds, Marchand’s performance was outstanding. Zac Stubblety-Cook from Australia (2:06.79) and Caspar Corbeau from the Netherlands (2:07.90) could only watch in awe.
The Wednesday evening session of the swimming events in Paris was truly memorable, with world records being shattered and amazing athletes achieving remarkable victories. These incredible performances will be remembered for years to come.
