“Phenomenal”, “lunar”, “captivating”… Although still little known, Léon Marchand seduces the world

Although Léon Marchand masterfully won gold in the 200m medley on Thursday evening, bringing his total to six career world titles, the Frenchman nevertheless suffered a setback. That of his most important popularity rating with the Singapore public. In terms of applause, the Toulouse native simply didn't exist against China's Wang Shun, who was greeted like a rock star by the women, admittedly almost exclusively Asian (and Chinese). It was enough to meet this vast fan club after the final to understand that sporting level was not his main source of interest...

This is fortunately not the case for the foreign journalists present at the OCBC Arena to cover these World Championships, the vast majority of whom remain in shock at the performance achieved by the Frenchman on Wednesday evening, when he smashed Ryan Lochte's world record in the 200m medley (1'52''61). "He's simply incredible ," enthuses David...