Michael Phelps and Ian Thorpe CONGRATULATES Leon Marchand for winning first Olympic title at Paris Games

The 22-year-old Leon Marchand became one of the biggest stars of the 2024 Paris Olympic Games by winning his first Olympic title.

Michael Phelps and Ian Thorpe CONGRATULATES Leon Marchand for winning first Olympic title at Paris Games

Michael Phelps, Leon Marchand, and Ian Thorpe [Image Credit: Imago/NPR/Men's Health]

The boisterous crowd at the Paris Olympics swimming event could be heard even from outside the building Leon Marchand won his first Olympic gold medal in the 400-meter individual medley. He became one of the biggest stars of the Paris Games with a dominating victory on Sunday night.

The 22-year-old surpassed legend Michael Phelps‘ 15-year-old record stunning fans across the world. On his Instagram account, he noted “A DREAM CAME TRUE!! MERCI PARIS,” where Phelps and Ian Thorpe both congratulated the young star.

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Marchand said he started “very, very fast” and didn’t focus on other lanes, “I was focused on myself.” He was shy of breaking his own record of 4:02.50, with the recent being 4:25.95 seconds. As per reports, Phelps was present in the arena to witness the event as part of NBC’s broadcast team.

Marchand even got a call from the French President Emmanuel Macron, who congratulated him for getting his first Olympic medal. Not only that, Leon Marchand mentioned that the president “watched the race with all of his family and they all screamed when I won.”

Michael Phelps former coach Bob Bowman praises Leon Marchand on his accomplishment

Leon Marchand’s coach and former Michael Phelps coach Bob Bowman said he even cried when the young star won the record. Just like how Bowman witnessed Phelps winning 23 Olympic gold medals, he saw Marchand stunning the crowd in the same fashion.

Bob Bowman and Leon Marchand [Image Credit: Swimming World/Swimswam]
Bob Bowman and Leon Marchand [Image Credit: Swimming World/Swimswam]

Bowman wished that Marchand did not crumble under the Olympic pressure before his race, but he was proven wrong seeing how well the 22-year-old performed. “Very few people can go into that environment and perform at that level,” he said.

It was incredible. I’ve never really been at anything like that…it was fantastic. I actually did tear up a little bit right at the end, everyone was so happy.
Bob Bowman during interview with Associated Press.

Bowman said he hoped for Marchand to rise above the pressure and perform at his best condition to which “he did amazing”. His concerns were to keep the swimmer in his top condition both mentally and physically and seeing how he handled himself all the week, Marchand surprised him. The final advice he gave to Marchand before the race was “have fun out there, that’s it,” which the young star did.

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