Léon Marchand etched his way into legend as the first man to win two gold medals in the swimmnig pool in the same day. That there was also world record in the pool seemed circumstantial.
Water-borne wonder
Forget wunderkinds because France has its very own boy water in the aqua-dynamic shape of Léon Marchand who became the first man to win two gold medals in the same evening in the swimming pool. The 22-year-old added the 200m butterfly and then the 200m breaststroke to the 400m individual medley he collected on Day 2. He plans to compete in the 200m medley as well. Shall we say four?
Teen on the scene
Pity the poor lad Zhanle Pan. He'll be 20 in a couple of days and he chose the same evening as Léon Marchand was in the house to set a world record on his way to gold in the 100m freestyle. Pan's very much the man back home in China.
Open water feats
Léon Marchand's two gold medals capped a fine day of medalling for French athletes. Cassandre Beaugrand produced a magnificent run to claim the women's triathlon which got underway with a dive into the murky but officially clean waters of the river Seine at the Pont Alexandre III. Around they swam for 1500m before a 40km cycle ride and a 10km run. She completed the three legs in one hour, 54 minutes and 55 seconds.
Teen titans
Zhanle Pan's not the only power teen in the Chinese delegation. Yuxi Chen, 18, and Hongchan Quan,17, mashed up the field to win the women's synchronised 10m platform event at the Aquatics Centre in Saint Denis. They held first from beginning to the end and finished 45 points ahead of the silver medallists Jin Mi Jo and Mi Rae Kim from North Korea.
Old timer
At the other end of the spectrum stands Senor Rafael Nadal. The 38-year-old Spaniard lost his second round singles match against Serbia's Novak Djokovic on Day 3 and paired up with Carlos Alcaraz lost in the quarter-finals of the doubles to the American fourth seeds Austin Krajicek and Rajeev Ram. Nadal, the winner of 22 Grand Slam tournaments – which are the most prestigious on the circuit – hinted that he might not be on his way to the final Grand Slam event of the season at the US Open in New York. “It doesn't look like it," said Nadal who has been plagued by injuries over the past two years. "I need some time. But for me it looks difficult.” Take your time, laddie. You've earned it.
