21-year-old French swimming sensation Leon Marchand made history on July 22 at the World Aquatics Championships in Fukuoka, Japan, by shattering Michael Phelps' last remaining world record in the 400 metres individual medley, CNN reported. Phelps had held the record for almost 21 years since setting it at the 2008 Beijing Olympics, but Marchand stunned the world with his remarkable performance, completing the event in 4:02.50, an astounding 1.34 seconds faster than Phelps' previous mark.
Marchand's achievement is all the more remarkable as he was just six years old when Phelps set the record, and now he has not only broken it but also finished more than four seconds ahead of the USA's Carson Foster, who came in second, and almost seven seconds ahead of Japan's Seto Daiya in third.
The young French swimmer expressed his elation and disbelief at his accomplishment, emphasising that he had trained extensively for this moment and was ecstatic to have surpassed his previous personal best by two seconds and secured his third gold medal at the world championships.
In addition to Marchand's stunning feat, Australia's Ariarne Titmus also made waves by setting a world record in the women's 400-metre freestyle, finishing with an impressive time of 3:55.38, even outpacing the legendary Katie Ledecky who secured the second position.
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