‘The audacity,’ says BBC pundit as Leon Marchand achieves never-before-seen Olympic feat ‘not even Michael Phelps tried’
FRENCH swimmer Leon Marchand made history in the pool on Wednesday night.
The 22-year-old became the first ever athlete to win TWO Olympic gold medals in TWO hours.
Marchand earned gold in both the Men’s 200m Butterfly and the Men’s 200m Breaststroke.
Unbelievably the star competed in both events in the same night, waiting just two hours to bag himself a second gold in the breaststroke after already finishing first in the butterfly.
Marchand’s achievements weren’t just standing atop the podium either, the Frenchman actually set an OLYMPIC RECORD in both of the events too.
No wonder his mind-blowing showing left BBC commentator Ali Bruce-Ball gushing.
Watching on from inside the Aquatics Centre, he said: “Leon Marchand is an absolute sensation.
“He’s done the unthinkable, he’s done the double. He’s done the 200m butterfly in this session and he’s also won the 200m breaststroke.
“A double Olympic champion in one session – that I cannot believe.
“Not even Michael Phelps tried that. The audacity.
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“I cannot believe he even tried it, never mind winning them both.”
Michael Phelps remains the most decorated Olympian of all-time with his astonishing 28 medals, including 23 golds.
But the American star never dared to win two gold within the same session.
Marchand still has a long way to go if he wants to catch up with Phelps, but he can add his two golds on Wednesday night to the gold he already achieved in the Men’s 400m Individual Medley on Sunday.
While he also has another shot at securing a medal on Thursday when he competes in the Men’s 200m Individual Medley.
Marchand, who is competing in his first ever Olympic games, was just 0.38 seconds away from beating the world record during his breaststroke efforts too.
BBC's Olympics line-up in full
Presenters:
- Clare Balding
- Gabby Logan
- Hazel Irvine
- Isa Guha
- Jeanette Kwakye
- JJ Chalmers
- Mark Chapman
Studio guests:
- Beth Tweddle
- Chris Hoy
- Denise Lewis
- Fred Sirieix
- Jessica Ennis-Hill
- Kate Richardson-Walsh
- Katherine Grainger
- Laura Kenny
- Mark Foster
- Michael Johnson
- Nicola Adams
- Rebecca Adlington
- Tonia Couch
Radio:
- Adrian Chiles
- Eleanor Oldroyd
- Kelly Cates
- Mark Chapman
- Naga Munchetty
- Tony Livesey
The astounding showing didn’t go unnoticed online either with plenty of fans in awe of his performance.
One wrote: “History made! Two gold medals in two hours! Never done before!
“Third already in Paris. What an alien, a phenomenon, a generational talent, already one of the greatest! Unbelievable”.
While another added: “Absolutely superb. What an athlete! The next Phelps?!”
A third commented: “Astonishing swimming and giving his nation a night to remember, very special.”
And a fourth posted: “What an incredible sportsman and inspiration to others. That young man is going places and he is going to enjoy every moment.”