Leon Marchand delivered the result that France has been expecting for two years to earn his first European title on a night when Germany’s 19-year-old Johannes Liebmann pulverised the men’s 1500m freestyle world record, becoming the first man under 14.30 with a time of 14.26.79.
The 24-year-old French sporting icon, whose preparations for the European Aquatics Championships Paris 2026 had been undermined by injury, finished a full body length clear of a world class field to win the men’s 200m butterfly final on day six.
His time of 1:51.52, witnessed by an adoring Olympic Aquatic Centre crowd, was not far shy of the Olympic record of 1:51.21 he set in this event while winning four golds at the Paris 2024 Games.
There were further cogent reasons to be cheerful for the French supporters as Mary-Ambre Moluh set a European record of 57.94 in winning the women’s 100m backstroke title, with Marrit Steenbergen of The Netherlands taking silver in 58.46 and Moluh’s team-mate Pauline Mahieu securing bronze in 58.77.
Sweden’s 32-year-old Paris 2024 double gold medallist Sarah Sjostrom narrowly failed to earn European gold on her return to the French capital.
Sjostrom, who returned to the sport in April having taken a 20-month break – during which time she became a mother – was narrowly beaten to the women’s 50m freestyle title by Poland’s Katarzyna Wasick, two years her senior, who clocked 23.84 to the Swede’s 23.86, with bronze going to Italy’s 19-year-old double world record breaker here, Sara Curtis, in 23.99.
A dizzying opening burst of top class finals continued with the men’s 50m breaststroke, where Italy’s Olympic 100m breaststroke champion Nicolo Martinenghi secured victory in 26.57 ahead of Koen de Groot of The Netherlands in 26.62 and his Italian team-mate, world champion Simone Cerasuolo, who clocked 26.62.
The final salvo of opening gold medal swims saw Ireland’s Ellen Walshe, already women’s 400m individual medley champion, earn a dramatic double as she came home first in the 200m individual medley from lane one, clocking 2:09.81 ahead of Italy’s Anita Gastaldi on 2:10.07 and Belgium’s Roos Vanotterdijk on 2:10.10.
Para swimming had made its debut in these Championships earlier in the day, and the first European medallists were determined in the women’s 50m freestyle and men’s 100m freestyle finals.
Marchand had arrived in Paris carrying not just a hip adductor injury but a huge weight of expectation.
The nation that had thrilled to his quadruple triumph at the home Olympics had long marked down the European Aquatics Championships for a repeat performance.
As the main Paris 2026 poster boy remarked wryly on the eve of competition, his injury – which precluded him swimming events involving breaststroke here – was “pretty bad timing.”
But having cut his individual programme to the 200m butterfly and tomorrow’s men’s 400m individual medley, the 24-year-old Texas-based phenomenon has made the most of his involvement.
On day one he risked himself in the opening leg of the men’s 4x200m freestyle, and a staggering lead-off split of 1:43.76 set France up for silver behind Olympic and world champions Great Britain.
He then qualified fastest for the 200m butterfly final in 1:53.95 to send home hopes soaring.
Hungary’s Olympic men’s 200m backstroke champion Hubert Kos, who had already won that event here, set the early pace, leading until the halfway point, which he reached in 53.32, before fading to sixth place.
The second half was all Marchand, with the rapt crowd cheering every time his head rose, and in the final 50 metres he found the power to turn a contest into a procession.
The spectators had filled the arena with ear-buzzing sound at the introduction of the multiple Paris 2024 gold medallist.
When he touched home there was a pandemonium of waving home flags and a huge chant of “Leon, Leon, Leon…” This, truly, was what a local hero looked like.
“It was an awesome moment!,” he told France 24. “I was already in touch with Hubert and there was an amazing vibe in the pool, so I’ll simply remember it for a long time.
“The last 50 was really good. I think it’s the best 50 I’ve done in a long time, but it also means I maybe could have started faster.”
And when the medal ceremony MC turned the sound down halfway through La Marseillaise, the crowd sung it to the end with pride.
Silver went to Apostolos Siskos of Greece in 1:54.13, with Italy’s Alberto Razzetti taking bronze in 1:54.23.
Liebmann, who lowered the men’s European 800m freestyle record to 7:37.94 earlier this year, was a man on a mission in his 1500m freestyle final – two and a half seconds inside world record pace after 400m, and accelerating.
Throughout the second half of the race the question appeared not to be whether he would win, or whether he would break the world record, but by how much he would beat the world record.
In the end he improved the mark of 14.30.67 set by Bobby Finke of the United States in winning at the Paris 2024 Games by almost four seconds. A monumental performance. And the third world record to be set at these Championships following the two marks in the women’s 50m backstroke by Italy’s own 19-year-old world record breaker, Sara Curtis.
“The time is insane but I knew I could go fast and that was the plan, go fast in the beginning and keep that pace, get clear of the others,” Liebmann told European Aquatics. “But then I it hurt quite a lot!” To hear the crowd cheering in the last 200m was a great, great feeling.”
Silver went to Hungary’s Zalan Sarkany in 14:39.45, with Germany’s Paris 2024 open water swimming silver medallist Oliver Klemet taking bronze in 14.40.64.
The women’s 50m freestyle victory clearly came as something of a shock to Poland’s EA short course 50m champion Wasick, who had won two previous European medals – both silver.
Para swimmers operate within a classification system that categories their degree of impairment .Classes S1 to S10 involve decreasing degrees of physical impairment. Classes S11 to S13 deal with vision impairment, with S11 being the most severe. The S14 class relates to intellectual impairment.
In integrated racing the first swimmer home is not always the winner, as all participants are assessed according to a points system relating to their particular category.
S11 swimmer Irene van Drimmelen of The Netherlands won gold in the women’s final.
Silver went to Defne Kurt of Turkiye ((S10) and bronze to van Drimmelen’s team-mate Liesette Bruinsma (S11). These first medals were awarded by the European Aquatics President Antonio Silva.
Men’s gold was won by Denmark’s Alexander Hillhouse (S14), with silver going to Dutch para swimmer Rogier Dorsman (S11) and bronze to Portugal’s Marco Meneses (S11).
Victory in the concluding mixed 4x200m freestyle, in a Championship record time of 7:24.13, edged Great Britain back to the top of the medals table with six golds – one more than Italy.
Silver went to Germany in 7:25.43 and bronze to NAB in 7:26.35.
Spain’s Hugo Gonzalez set a Championship record of in topping the men’s 200m individual medley semi-final standings on 1:56.61. Hungary’s Kos, who has won this title at the last two editions of these Championships, was second fastest on 1:56.73.
Ukraine’s Nikita Sheremet topped the men’s 50m freestyle semi-finals qualifying in 21.38 from NAB’s Egor Kornev on 21.44 and his Ukrainian team-mate Vladyslav Bukhov on 21.51.
Hungary’s 100m butterfly champion Kristof Milak was fifth fastest in 21.68. France’s Maxime Grousset just failed to make the cut after finishing ninth in 21.76.
Lithuania’s world record holder Ruta Meilutyte qualified third fastest into tomorrow’s women’s 50m breaststroke final in 30.05 behind Italy’s Benedetta Pilato on 29.84 and Estonia’s Eneli Jefimova on 29.93.
Great Britain’s Emily Richards was fastest into tomorrow night’s women’s 200m breaststroke final on 2:07.10 ahead of Denmark’s defending champion Helena Bach on 2:07.18.
NAB’s Georgii Iakovlev topped the men’s 100m backstroke semi-finalists in 52.89 ahead of Italy’s Paris 2024 champion Thomas Ceccon on 52.93. France’s world bronze medallist Yohann Ndoye-Brouard and Mewen Tomac were fifth and sixth fastest.
A stupendous night of swimming action ended with an extraordinary twist as the swim-off for a reserve place in the women’s 50m breaststroke final, between Kotryna Teterevkova of Lithuania and NAB’s Ralina Giliazova ended in – a tie.
Both clocked 30.43…
Before the session began the packed galleries witnessed an emotional farewell ceremony for retiring 35-year-old home swimmer Florent Manaudou, whose 14-year-career encompassed six Olympic medals, including 50m freestyle gold at Rio 2016, four world titles and six European titles.
He also set world short course records in the 50m freestyle and 50m backstroke, and was awarded the Knight of the French National Order of the Legion d’Honneur.
Among those offering tributes was his elder sister Laure, who won Olympic 400m freestyle gold in 2004. They thus became the first siblings to win Olympic gold medals in swimming.
It was only fitting that Manaudou should conclude by leading the ritual clapping before an evening of scintillating action got underway…
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Mike Rowbottom for European Aquatics