2024 PARIS SUMMER OLYMPIC GAMES
Huge Shout-Out to Laura Rosado and Sophie Kaufman for serving to me slender this record down earlier than our Slack dialog devolved into tomfoolery.
Over the approaching week, there will likely be extra protection and opinion items about these Olympic Video games, however for now, let’s acknowledge the crème de la crème of the performances. Time could mood and alter one’s opinions, so it’s best handy these awards out sooner fairly than later.
It is very important word that these are opinions. Subsequently, they mix the subjectivity of the creator (me) with the objectivity of the outcomes in order that one may doubtlessly have a look at the identical instances and draw totally different conclusions. In fact, I invite you to agree or disagree with my picks within the bastion of mental discourse that’s …the SwimSwam Remark Part.
Swimmer of the Meet –Leon Marchand, France
4 Particular person Gold Medals in Olympic File Instances.
3 Nationwide Data.
2 European Data.
1 Leon Marchand
Want I say extra? No, however I’ll anyway. The Frenchman, along with his 4 particular person golds, enters rarefied air, becoming a member of a listing of simply three different swimmers to have achieved stated feat: Mark Spitz in 1972, Kristin Otto in 1988, and Michael Phelps in 2004 and 2008. Nevertheless, what Marchand pulled off could also be extra memorable than the others is that he did it in entrance of a house crowd.
The partisan Parisian crowd made itself identified and was simply a consider serving to him win the golds; as Marchand stated, talking concerning the 400 IM,
“The ambiance was wonderful, I don’t know the right way to clarify it, I had goosebumps earlier than, and in the course of the race too. On the breaststroke part I may hear everybody simply cheering for me. That was particular and successful right this moment was actually wonderful for me. I opened my eyes, I listened to the whole lot occurring round me, and that basically pushed me to do a great race.”
Marchand’s wins in each IMs, the 200 breast and 200 fly, are all worthy of word, however I’m going to deal with the 200 IM. Within the final of his particular person occasions, Marchand squared off in opposition to the defending Olympic Gold and Silver medalists, Wang Shun and Duncan Scott, however blew them out of the water, successful by over a second. His time of 1:54.06 was simply .06 off Ryan Lochte’s unworldly 1:54.00 World File from 2011 and in a pool talked about left and proper as being gradual, turning into the second quickest performer ever and the one individual to be inside half a second prior to now decade speaks volumes of the swim (and swimmer).
Regardless of some folks believing that Marchand was carried out after his fourth gold medal, the Frenchman stepped up for his nation, swimming within the finals of the blended medley relay in addition to within the prelims and finals of the lads’s medley relay. He helped to set nationwide information in each and earned a bronze medal within the latter, his fifth medal of the video games, far outpacing each different male swimmer.
Honorable Mentions, Male Swimmer of the Meet:
- Bobby Finke: The USA’s Bobby Finke saved face for a lot of his nation. Not solely did he assist the People declare victory on the medal desk, however he was additionally the lone American man to face atop the rostrum in a person occasion. After operating out of room within the 800 and unable to catch Daniel Wiffen, Finke opted to upend his tried and true technique of chasing opponents down and simply went on the race from the get-go, main from begin to end. It was such a daring and galvanizing transfer that his coach, Anthony Nesty, was in tears mid-race. Such braveness and tenacity typically sadly finally ends up fading, however the American had simply sufficient left in him to interrupt the 12-year-old world file by .35 of a second to earn his first World File and really grow to be one of many nice male distance swimmers of all time.
- Pan Zhanle: Whereas the opposite two names on this record received two particular person medals, Pan walked away from the pool with only one particular person medal; nevertheless it was gold and in an otherworldly, World-record-shattering 46.40. Not solely was it the primary World File of the meet, once more in what has been known as a gradual pool, however the large .40 chunk taken out of the earlier finest is exceptional in such a brief distance. Pan additionally grew to become the proprietor of the quickest 100 free relay cut up, turning into the primary to swim sub-46, as his 45.92 helped China transfer from third to 1st within the medley relay and finish the USA’s dominance within the occasion.
- Kristof Milak: Braden solely had two HMs for this class on the Ladies’s Awards and perhaps I ought to have carried out in order properly as a result of the massive wrestle I’m having is between Milak and Wiffen. Wiffen received gold and bronze, whereas Milak received gold and silver, however Wiffen’s 800 win was an Olympic file. Nevertheless, I’m giving the sting to Milak as a result of not solely are his two medals an indication of his perseverance in overcoming his struggles with psychological well being, however his 100 fly gold was lower than half a second off the WR, and his 200 fly gold was solely taken away by some man named Marchand. With the medal, Milak grew to become simply the 2nd man to win 4 medals within the Butterfly occasions on the Olympics, becoming a member of solely Michael Phelps with such an honor.
Swim of the Meet – Males’s 1500 Freestyle
With simply two particular person World Data damaged and each on the lads’s aspect the swim of the meet was going to return all the way down to one in all them and we predict the 1500 will get the sting.
In 2021, Bobby Finke surged from behind to win each the 800 and 1500 Olympic titles. Stymied within the 800 by Wiffen’s sturdy backhalf, Finke entered the 1500 with solely a silver medal to his identify and was swimming out of lane 7.
It’s a disgrace that his come from behind, final 50 surge was coined being “Finked”. It ought to have been known as being “Bobbied” in an homage to Ricky Bobby’s “Shake and Bake” slingshot strategy of drafting till late within the race and being flung into the lead. Subsequently, leaving the time period “Finked” for use for his 1500 technique.
It wouldn’t be a Mark Wild article with out some esoteric quote or pun, so this example appears good for Solar Tzu’s “Those that are in a position to adapt and alter in accord with the enemy and obtain victory are known as divine.”
And adapt and alter Bobby Finke did. Out first on the 100 and inside a second or so of his finest time, Finke stored up the tempo and threw out the sport plan, and led from begin to end. In what may have been a really foolhardy try had he been caught or drained, Finke held on to win not solely a really wholesome margin of three.88 seconds over Italy’s Gregorio Paltrinieri but additionally soloing (and successful) his try to beat Solar Yang’s WR line to the wall. Final summer season, in Fukuoka, Finke completed simply in need of the file however had Ahmed Hafnaoui there to push him, whereas this swim was all Bobby Finke.
Honorable Mentions, Male Swim of the Meet:
- Males’s 100 Free: The opposite WR-breaking swim, the lads’s 100 free, pit the quickest two 100 swimmers ever, David Popovici and Pan Zhanle, in opposition to each other. Throw within the 2016 Olympic Champion, Kyle Chalmers, and the race gave the impression to be set as much as be a barnburner. Nevertheless, solely Pan gave the impression to be on hearth as he stormed out to the lead on the 50 (24.12) and solely constructed upon it, coming house within the quickest final 50 (24.12) to the touch in 46.40. Not solely did he win by 1.08 seconds, however he smashed his personal file by .40 of a second.
- Males’s 200 Fly: Maybe extra of a race of the meet than swim, the lads’s 200 fly had much more scrutiny than among the different occasions. Milak was trying to defend his Olympic title in opposition to Leon Marchand, who was beginning within the first of his two 200-meter-long finals for the night. Milak held the lead via the 100 52.86 to 53.46 and truly elevated it by an extra .12 on the 150 flip, however chasing glory and impressed by the gang, Marchand surged house in 28.97 to not solely take the win by .54 but additionally decrease the Olympic file by .04.
- Males’s 4×100 Medley: In an identical vein to the 200 Fly and extra of the race than swim, save for one cut up, the Males’s Medley relay was an exhilarating and up and down race between 4 groups. China and Nice Britain roared out to the lead on the midway level, however France and the USA fought again with splits of 49.57 and 49.41, respectively, to take over by practically three-quarters of a second, however WR holder Pan Zhanle exploded with a 21.57 opening 50 and surged house in 24.35 to file the primary ever sub-46 cut up (45.92) and hand China the victory.
Tomoyuki Matsushita (picture: Jack Spitser)
In a meet with so few double-medal winners, one would count on there to be extra possibilities for younger swimmers to punch via and nab a medal, however alas, with solely three years between these Olympics and the final ones in Tokyo, many older swimmers could have determined to stay round and thus block most of the youthful swimmers from getting these alternatives to make the finals.
That stated, Japan’s Tomoyuki Matsushita, who on the Japenese Trials beat Tomoru Honda and Daiya Seto, was in a position to win the silver medal. Simply the eighth seed, Matsushita, who turned 19 mid-meet, however after the 400 IM, was simply sixth after the backstroke, managed to get himself into fifth on the 300 mark, however exploded with the quickest final 50 (27.67) to go each Carson Foster and Max Litchfield to win the silver in 4:08.62, simply .04 forward of the American and .23 in entrance of the Brit.
Honorable Mentions, Junior of the Meet
- Kuzey Tunçelli: With so few alternatives to make the ultimate, the 16-year-old Turkish swimmer Tuncelli made probably the most of his alternative. After ending eleventh within the 800 free earlier within the week, the Turkish nationwide file holder made that subsequent step up, qualifying for the ultimate of the 1500 in fifth place. The primary Turk to make the finals of a swimming occasion on the Olympics, he chopped an additional 4 seconds off his prelims time, ending in 14:41.22. Not solely rewriting the Turkish information but additionally the Junior World File, which had been set again in 2019 at 14:46.09.
- Thomas Heilman: Whereas maybe not the outcomes he hoped for within the 100 fly, 17-year-old Heilman did make the semifinals of the 200 fly. After taking the eleventh seed into the semis with a time of 1:55.74, the American dropped practically a second, posting a time of 1:54.87 to complete in tenth, however solely .25 away from eighth. He did, nevertheless, equal Matsushita’s medal depend as he was part of the USA’s males’s medley relay, swimming a 51.15 fly leg within the prelims.
- Rafael Fente-Damers: Whereas he didn’t make a semifinal like Italy’s Alessandro Ragaini (14th- 200 free) or come shut to creating a last like Zhang Zhanshuo in each the 400 free (twelfth – 3:46.76) and within the 400 IM (tenth – 4:12.71) the French athlete did decide up a medal. He cut up a powerful 47.95 freestyle anchor on the lads’s medley prelims and earned a bronze on account of the night’s relay. Within the prelims of the 100 free, he tied for twenty third in 48.82, properly off his better of 48.14, however confirmed up when wanted.
Breakout Swimmer of the Meet – Ilya Kharun, Canada
Courtesy: Swimming Canada/Ian MacNicol
(“Breakout Swimmer” may consult with a swimmer that got here out of nowhere to put properly or it may imply swimmers that had wonderful meets that weren’t fairly predicated to take action. For these functions, we’ll use the latter time period, however keep tuned for an article concerning the former)
Canada’s second-most embellished swimmer from these Olympics, Ilya Kharun, actually pushed via and emerged as a formidable power. Regardless of having a powerful junior profession and successful two medals on the Brief Course Worlds in 2022, Kharun, who simply wrapped up his first yr at ASU, had but to interrupt via and medal on the lengthy course meet. Nevertheless, a tie for fourth on the 2023 Worlds within the 200 fly, proved to be a great omen of issues to return, as he smashed the Canadian file and earned bronze behind Marchand and Milak in a time of 1:52.80.
Whereas that medal wasn’t completely surprising, his bronze within the 100 fly definitely was as he swam a mark of fifty.45 to say his second medal of the meet, beating out the likes of Maxime Grousset, Noe Ponti, and Naoki Mizunuma, all of whom had medaled within the 100 fly earlier than.
Honorable Mentions, Breakout Swimmer of the Meet
- Apostolos Christou: After making the most of the smaller subject in Doha, Greece’s Christou, may have been seen as a possible medalist within the 100 again, as he was the defending World bronze medalist. However it was within the 200, an occasion which he didn’t contest at each the 2023 and 2024 worlds, that the Greek struck steel, silver to be precise. In a fairly topsy-turvey occasion, which noticed no repeat finalist from 2021, the 27-year-old swam to a brand new private better of 1:54.82, ending .56 behind the gold medal-winning time.
- Luke Hobson: Whereas it wasn’t the quickest of finals, the lads’s 200-free was definitely one of many extra entertaining races. Germany’s Lukas Martens led from the beginning via the 150, nevertheless it was David Popovici and Matt Richards who have been shut behind. American Luke Hobson was simply seventh on the 100 however surged within the final 100 to go previous medalist Duncan Scott, amongst others, to nab the bronze in 1:44.79. Along with that medal, Hobson led off the USA’s 4×200 free relay, including a silver medal to his assortment.
- Caspar Corbeau: Like Christou and Hobson, Caspar Corbeau gained some confidence and {hardware} from his silver medal efficiency in Doha. Nevertheless, in a a lot bigger and extra skilled subject in Paris, the Dutchman was not favored to medal. After a powerful displaying and PB within the 100, Corbeau took up the reigns for his nation as compatriot Arno Kamminga withdrew with an harm. Within the 200, he efficiently managed to qualify for the ultimate forward of two world record-holders and, within the last, set a brand new PB of two:07.90 to win the bronze medal.
- Matsushita may naturally additionally match right here, however is already talked about above, as may Kim Woo-min, however he was picked to medal on this occasion, so appears a lot much less of a break-out
Clutch Relay Performer – China’s 4×100 Medley Relay
China Males’s 400 Medley Relay Paris (picture: Jack Spitser)
It will be onerous to separate the crew’s particular person performances from each other to find out totally who had all of the accountability for the win. You might be screaming that it must be Pan Zhanle‘s otherworldly 45.92 anchor, as it’s the quickest cut up ever, and he’s the primary to ever break 46. Nevertheless, had the opposite legs been only a mixed second slower, China would have received the bronze as a substitute.
Xu Jiayu was slower than his silver medal-winning efficiency by .05, however so too was Ryan Murphy, and this was the primary time that Xu had ever crushed Murphy face to face on a relay, and touching first in 52.37 could have impressed these behind him.
Qin Haiyang‘s 57.98 doesn’t appear exceptional, contemplating he entered into the meet with a 57.69, however after ending simply seventh within the particular person last in 59.50 and failing to make the ultimate of the 200, a sub-59 cut up was no assure.
Solar Jiajun‘s 51.19 was the second-slowest cut up of the sphere, however was sufficient to maintain the Chinese language in touch with France and Nice Britain and is a marked enchancment on the 52.35 he swam on this relay in Fukuoka.
Moreover, this seems to be the primary time in historical past that China recorded a time in an Olympic last, as they’d been disqualified in each 2021 and 2016 and had by no means made the ultimate earlier than then, so I’d say fairly clutch.
Honorable Mentions, Clutch Relay Performer
- James Man: This man (Sure, okay, it’s a pun) put his all into making the British crew, taking out the 200 at Trials at a blistering tempo and barely holding on, however did so and allowed the victorious British foursome from Tokyo to repeat the feat in Paris. Out in 1:45.04 within the prelims and 1:45.09 within the finals, the Brit was quicker than each the silver and bronze medalists within the occasion and gave Crew GB the lead they wanted to win their second consecutive gold medal within the occasion. His cut up was the quickest flying begin and the 4th quickest out of all 32 splits.
- Hunter Armstrong: The backstroke sprinter having the quickest cut up for the People within the prelims wasn’t that surprising as he was the 4th quickest at Trials, however his 47.50 didn’t go unobserved, particularly as he was surrounded by 48s. Nevertheless, in finals, his 46.75 did shock many because it opened up what had been lower than half a second result in practically a two-second lead on the closest competitor, sealing the gold medal for the 4×100 free relay. Whereas unable to precisely duplicate that point, his 47.19 on the 4×100 medley was sufficient to seize the silver medal.
- Florent Manaudou: Simply the sixth quickest cut up amongst the anchor legs, the Frenchman’s 47.59 doesn’t appear all that spectacular, however for a person that solely trains for the 50 and only in the near past set a PB within the 100 freed from 47.90 (9 years after his final PB), the time is clutch. Not solely did his efficiency assist erase the super-suited nationwide file of France by over a second, nevertheless it additionally helped France win the bronze medal and gave the French crew the power to thank all their followers from the rostrum. Arguably, Maxime Grousset‘s 49.57 or Caeleb Dressel‘s 49.41 fly splits are rather more spectacular, however A. Manaudou’s 100 was extra clutch as in 2013 and 2015, Manaudou cut up simply 47.93 on World Championship-winning relays, B. it additionally appeared extra surprising and C. I needed to offer him an award. (the tomfoolery talked about initially, originated with my mentioning of Manaudou).
