Olympic swimming champion Leon Marchand‘s impressive year continues: The Frenchman set a world record in the 200 meter individual medley at the World Cup in Singapore. The 22-year-old Marchand, who won four gold medals at the Summer Games in Paris, swam a time of 1:48.88 minutes, beating the previous best set by Ryan Lochte of the United States by almost a second. Lochte needed 1:49.63 minutes to complete the distance in December 2012. “It was very exciting. “I did something I’ve never done before,” said the Frenchman: “The crowd really pushed me, it reminded me of the Olympic Games.” In mid-October, Marchand had already won in Shanghai with a time of 1:50.30 minutes French and European record set over this distance. He will now complete his trip to Asia on Saturday with the 400 meter individual medley, after which he will swim at the Short Course World Championships in Budapest in mid-December.
