European Championships To Open With Leon Marchand’s Quest For Maiden Title
The schedule for the European Aquatics Championships has been confirmed with the men’s 400IM and both 4x200m freestyle relays comprising the opening night’s finals of the swimming programme.
The championships run from 31 July to 16 August with the pool programme taking place for seven days from 10 August.
The swimming will get underway at the Olympic Aquatic Centre in Paris St Denis a little over two years after Leon Marchand brought the house down at Paris La Défense Arena as he roared to four golds and a relay bronze in front of a rapturous home crowd.
Leon Marchand: Photo Courtesy: Deepbluemedia
The Frenchman is also a seven-time world champion and holds the 200IM world records in the long and short-course pools and the 400IM global standard.
However, Marchand has yet to win a European senior medal, although he has two bronzes from the 2019 junior event.
The 23-year-old finished 14th in the 200 fly semis and was 28th in the 200 breast prelims at the 2020 Europeans – held in 2021 because of the Covid-19 pandemic. He’d go on to win the medley double at the worlds in Budapest the following year, setting a European record of 4:04.28 in the 400.
He didn’t appear at the 2022 and 2024 editions but he has the chance to add to his glittering medal haul with the men’s 400IM the first final to be contested.
The 200IM is one of nine finals on the last day with the 200m breaststroke and 200 fly on August 13 and 15 respectively.
Great Britain are the Olympic and world men’s 4×2 champions but they last topped the European podium in 2018. The squad will reunite in Paris after representing their home nations at the Commonwealth Games to go for gold in the final race of the opening night.
The men’s 100m and 200m freestyle finals – in which Romania’s David Popovici won the world double in Singapore last year are on August 12 and 14 respectively.
Marrit Steenbergen: Photo Courtesy: Deepbluemedia
Marrit Steenbergen won four golds among seven medals at Roma 2022 including the 100/200 free double. The 100 free final takes place on 11 August.
Simona Quadarella has eight European titles in the distance events. The Italian – who set a continental record of 15:31.79 en-route to silver in Singapore – should line up for the 800 final on 11 August with the 1500 two days later.
The open water swimming starts in the River Seine on 4 August and concludes on 8 August. The programme will start with the 10k races on 4 August, followed by the 5k (August 5), 3km knockout (7 August) and mixed relays on 8 August.
Diving will run from 31 July to 6 August; artistic swimming from 31 July to 5 August and the high diving will be held in the River Seine on 7-8 August.