By Sam Blacker on SwimSwam
2026 European Swimming Championships
August 10-16, 2026 Paris, France — Olympic Aquatics Centre LCM (50 Meters) Meet Information Meet Central Entries SwimSwam Preview IndexWorld record holder Leon Marchand has withdrawn from both IM events at the European Championships in Paris next week. He is the reigning world champion and world record holder in the 200 IM and 400 IM, and has won three world titles and the 2024 Olympic title in both events in the last four years.
The Texas-based swimmer was due to swim the events at the European Championships for the first time, having scratched the 400 IM and not entered the 200 IM at his last European Championships in 2021. He only swam the 200 fly there in Budapest, placing 14th in the semi-finals
Marchand injured his hip adductor during the heats of the 200 breaststroke at the French Elite Championships at the start of June, which forced his withdrawal from the remainder of the meet.
He had won the 400 IM on the first day of the competition, touching in 4:04.56 to notch the fifth-fastest performance in history. That made him the fastest European man this season by nearly six seconds ahead of Russia’s Ilia Borodin.
His injury was initially suspected to be minor, with ultrasound and MRI scans failing to reveal any major issues. However, he then reinjured the same adductor at the French team’s training camp in Vichy. He had already ruled out the 200 breaststroke this summer before that point, the event in which he is the European record holder and reigning Olympic champion, and was uncertain regarding his participation in the 400 IM.
It seems that although his recovery is progressing without any further issues, the timelines involved raise the risk of reinjury at these Championships. With entries in the 200 butterfly and 400 freestyle, as well as important roles on French relays, the decision has been made to forgo the IM events.
Press Release – Léon Marchand’s participation in the European Aquatics ChampionshipsSébastien Le Garrec, Team France doctor: “Léon Marchand’s muscle injury was reassessed by the medical team a few days before the start of the competition. His recovery is progressing favourably, and healing has been achieved to a very large extent. However, competing in the 200m and 400m individual medley still carries a non-negligible risk of recurrence. In order to preserve the rest of his competition, the decision has therefore been made not to enter him in these events.”
This announcement also confirms that Marchand will not swim the breaststroke leg of either the men’s 4×100 medley relay or the mixed 4×100 medley relay. France won silver at the World Championships in the former last summer, with Marchand’s 58.44 split playing a big part as they touched in a new French record of 3:27.96.
Carl Aitkaci is the likely replacement after setting a new lifetime best of 59.43 at the French Elite Championships two months ago, but it may be a struggle to return to the podium. Maxime Grousset, who split 49.27 on the butterfly leg, is also only just returning from injury after missing the French Elite Championships with a foot injury.
Marchand has individual entries remaining in the 200 butterfly and 400 freestyle next week, with the remainder of his schedule remaining unchanged. He will also swim the men’s 4×200 freestyle relay on the first day of the championships, having split 1:44.34 as France finished 6th at the 2025 World Championships.
In his absence, his training partner Hubert Kos now appears to be the favorite in the 200 IM, with former world junior record holder Borodin the favorite in the 400 IM. Kos won bronze behind Marchand and Shaine Casas at the World Championships last summer in a Texas 1-2-3, and is entered in the 200 IM as one of six entries for the Hungarian.
Marchand demolished Ryan Lochte’s 15-year-old world record in the 200 IM last summer, posting a time of 1:52.69 in the World Championships semi-finals. He went on to win gold in the final in 1:53.68, the #2 performance in history. He owns the world record in the 400 IM with a 4:02.50 from the 2023 World Championships.
He is the top seed in the 200 butterfly in a time of 1:52.57, and the 8th seed in the 400 freestyle in 3:44.70. He notched both of those times at the U.S. Open Championships in December last year.
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