He started on the basis of the world record before finishing in control… For his first dive of the week in Fukuoka, Léon Marchand managed the heats of his favorite 400m medley, taking 2nd time (4′10′’88) behind the American Carson Foster (4′09′’83).
“I was eager to start, blows the Toulousain. I wanted to leave quickly, that’s what I did, but it took a little longer at the end. I think it can do it tonight (the final will take place at 2:21 p.m. in Paris this Sunday). I want to win a World Championship title, that’s all! »
Already crowned last year at the World Championships in Budapest (as well as in the 200m medley), Marchand also aims to beat the last world record still held by Michael Phelps (4′03′’84 in 2008 at the Beijing Games).
In the 50m butterfly, Maxime Grousset wasted no time. On the contrary. From the series, the Insep sprinter signed the second best performance of the year (22′’74) and beat Florent Manaudou’s French record by 10/100th, which dated from 2015. A fanfare debut for an ambitious Grousset, who does not want to stop there.
“I will try to do even better tonight”
“I felt really good from the start, I saw that I was in front and I said to myself: it’s good it will do, breathes the student of Michel Chrétien. It’s my personal best but I don’t intend to stop there. I will try to do even better tonight (this Sunday in the semi-final at 1:23 p.m. French) even if it should pass with this weather. We’ll see, it’s cool. I will try to qualify for the final and then win. »
Unlike Grousset, Marie Wattel had a little more trouble getting started. The Habs, silver medalist in Budapest last year, qualified for the semi-finals of the 100m butterfly with the 11th time in the heats (58’02).
“I felt a little soft, it wasn’t my best race, she admits. After, I know that I still have a little under the foot. It didn’t swim very fast in my series and I adapted to the race, I know it’s not very smart. There are always learnings, it still passes quite widely so that’s the main thing. It’s also good to take a little slap and we’ll have to move tonight, remobilize and try to win the half by being more aggressive. »
Fantine Lesaffre and Charlotte Bonnet will not have the opportunity. The two French women failed with the same time (2′13′’28, 17th time) at the gates of the semi-finals of the 200m medley. A real underperformance for the first, the difficult discovery of a new specialty for the second.
“I’m a little disappointed,” explains Bonnet. But it’s the first time I’ve come to international competition over the distance, so I clearly lack experience. All year round, it’s either super good or very, very bad. There, it’s not terrible. Usually, I always have a little introduction with a relay. There, you had to be present from the start. »
No exploit among the other Blues involved in this first Japanese morning. Logan Fontaine settled for the 25th time in the 400m NL (3′51′’56) and Anastasiia Kirpichnikova (4′09′’43, 14th time) and Cyrielle Duhamel (4′16′’97, 30th time) are far from the final of the 400m NL, which promises a good explanation this Sunday evening between the American legend Kat ie Ledecky, 26, 19-time gold medalist at the Worlds, and Canadian nugget Summer McIntosh, 16, world record holder in the distance since last spring (3′56′’08).
In the relay, the two men’s and women’s 4 x 100 m NL did not manage to win their ticket for the final…
