Léon Marchand

French medley star who broke Michael Phelps' 400m IM world record and swept four golds at his home Olympics.

Born in Toulouse, France on May 17, 2001, Léon Marchand emerged from a swimming family with both parents being former competitive swimmers. His father Xavier Marchand won bronze at the 1996 Atlanta Olympics, while his mother Céline Bonnet was a French national champion. Marchand initially trained in France before making the pivotal decision to move to Arizona State University in 2021, where he began working with Bob Bowman, the legendary coach who guided Michael Phelps throughout his career. Under Bowman's guidance, Marchand's development accelerated rapidly. He broke onto the international scene at the 2022 World Championships in Budapest, where he claimed his first major individual title in the 400m individual medley. His progression continued at the 2023 World Championships in Fukuoka, where he won multiple medals and established himself as a dominant force across multiple events. His training at Arizona State transformed his technique and race strategy, particularly in his signature individual medley events. The Paris 2024 Olympics marked Marchand's defining moment as he delivered one of the most spectacular individual performances in Olympic swimming history. Competing on home soil, he captured four individual gold medals in four days: the 400m individual medley in world record time, plus victories in the 200m butterfly, 200m breaststroke, and 200m individual medley. This achievement matched Mark Spitz's 1972 feat of four individual golds at a single Olympics. His performances ignited unprecedented enthusiasm for swimming in France, with crowds creating an electric atmosphere at La Défense Arena. Marchand's technical mastery across all four swimming strokes represents a level of versatility rarely seen in modern swimming. His ability to excel equally in butterfly, backstroke, breaststroke, and freestyle has drawn inevitable comparisons to Michael Phelps, though his style remains distinctly his own. Swimming analysts regard him as the sport's next generational talent, while his Olympic success has elevated him to iconic status in French sport, cementing his position as the nation's most celebrated swimmer. Racing a reduced medley-only programme at the 2025 Worlds in Singapore, Marchand obliterated Ryan Lochte's long-standing 200m individual medley world record with 1:52.69 in the semi-finals - nearly a second and a half inside the old mark - then completed the 200/400 IM double and was named male Swimmer of the Meet for a second time.

Versatile swimmer specializing in individual medley and butterfly

Historic performance at Paris 2024 Olympics with 4 gold medals

• Paris 2024: 4 golds (400 IM, 200 fly, 200 breast, 200 IM) + bronze
• World Champion 2022/2023/2025