Golden relay double for Britain at Europeans as Marchand takes silver
PARIS: Britain won both the men’s and women’s 4x200m freestyle relays on the opening day of the European swimming championships on Monday as French swim star Leon Marchand took silver with his team as he returns from injury.
On the opening day of the European Swimming Championships, Britain claimed both the men's and women's 4x200m freestyle relays. The women's team, consisting of Freya Colbert, Abbie Wood, Leah Schlosshan and Freya Anderson, defeated their competitors with a time of 7 minutes 45.93 seconds. Hungary came in second with a time of 7:49.09, followed by Russia (under a neutral flag) with a time of 7:49.13.
The German women women finished fourth, just a hundredth of a second behind the Russians. The British men's team, with Matthew Richards, Jack McMillan, James Guy and Duncan Scott, matched their female counterparts' success by winning gold in 7:01.52. France's Leon Marchand, the four-time Olympic champion, secured silver with a team time of 7:02.23, his first European medal.
Marchand expressed being nervous about starting first and uncertain about his form, but was happy with the outcome. Earlier, Russia's Ilia Borodin claimed the men's 4x200m freestyle gold, clocking in at 4:08.17, while Italy's Alberto Razzetti took silver in 4:10.40. Britain's Max Litchfield won bronze in 4:11.58. Borodin, who is competing as a neutral athlete due to the invasion of Ukraine, had previously won bronze at the world championships in Singapore last year.
Despite being a major rival to Marchand during their junior careers, Borodin has been limited in events this week due to a lingering thigh injury that affects his breaststroke. Marchand is still participating in the men's 200m butterfly and 400m freestyle, as well as the relays with the French team.
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