Reflected in the mirror of the Danube basin, Katalin Kovák, President of Hungary and historical leader of the nationalist Fidesz party, announced this Saturday that Hungarians like “impossible missions” and that organizing the World Swimming Championships in four months was “an impossible mission”. Populist Viktor Orbán intends to use politically the championship presented by his government ahead of the first online swimming finals, marked by the explosive incursion of Frenchman Léon Marchand in the Phelps area.
Attacking the four-minute, four-second barrier in the 400-meter individual medley is a much more difficult challenge than organizing a swimming tournament in a pool built six years ago. So did the beardless Marchand, almost albino blond, with transparent eyebrows, anglerfish mouth and enchanted eyes. His consistency in the two lengths of the butterfly and the two lengths of the backstroke helped him stay on Carson Foster’s wave, and after turning to the partial breaststroke he began to impress an unusual strength in the unstable water until he was four seconds short he was the American. When he completed the turn to free swim, he was riding at a world record pace. He swam in a realm that seemed inaccessible to anyone but Michael Phelps.
Marchand touched the last plate in 4m 04.28s and hung the gold. He had one yard left to beat Phelps’ record in the final of the Beijing 2008 Games. Those 4:3.84 minutes are a magical milestone in the history of the sport. Nobody but Phelps went under 4.04 seconds in this test. The gifted swimmer from Baltimore made it there, armed with an exceptional wingspan and an exceptional phenotype, who relied on his gift for creating the butterfly’s levers and thrilled with the adrenaline rush of facing the greatest challenge of his life at the age of 23 in one to locate games.
Marchand came closer than anyone. Initially no taller than 1.84 m and with more moderate limbs than his predecessor, he swam after the giant in Budapest. Just under 20 years old suggests that in the Toulouse lad France have the destined hero to shine as hosts at the Paris Games in 2024. A lot of pressure awaits Marchand. It has the best tools to manage it. He will be joined by none other than Bob Bowman, the eccentric Georgia coach who, before becoming his mentor, was responsible for shaping Phelps’ career.
sun devil
After the Tokyo Games, where he finished sixth, Bowman recruited him to the University of Arizona. That season, he won the NCAA collegiate championship for the Sun Devils with an all-time high in the 200-yard stroke test. “Five years ago I watched the World Championships in Budapest on TV and now I’m here,” he said; “I’m still getting used to the idea of what I’ve achieved.” He had just come out of the water and seemed surprised by a record that put him above the usual great champions: Ryan Lochte (4m05.18s), Kosuke Hagino (4m 06.05s) or Laszclo Cseh (4m 06.16s).
Marchand was the big sensation of the first day of the World Cup. Less surprising were Katie Ledecky, winner of her fourth 400m free world title, and Caeleb Dressel, the United States gold leader in the 400m free relay.
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