Léon Marchand, winner of his second title in the 200m butterfly and qualified for the final of the 200m medley, continues to grab attention, but other Tricolores also achieved their goal, Wednesday, July 26, during the World Championships in Fukuoka.

Maxime Grousset, vice-world champion in Budapest in 2022, narrowly qualified for the 100m freestyle final (7? time in the semi-finals in 47 s 87). The 24-year-old swimmer will therefore be in the running to try to win a medal on Thursday. Briton Matthew Richards, world champion on Tuesday in the 200m freestyle, was the fastest of the semi-finalists (47 s 47). Romanian David Popovici, world record holder for the queen distance, achieved the 5th time (47 s 66).

Among the ladies, Analia Pigrée is the only Habs to have managed to extricate herself from the semi-finals of the 50m backstroke (6? time in 27 s 70). The reigning French champion will have to sublimate herself in the final on Thursday to hope for a new medal after the one – in bronze – obtained at the Worlds in 2022. Present in the second semi-final, Mary-Ambre Moluh (17 years old) has, on the other hand, was eliminated for 8 hundredths (27 s 82, 10? time of the semi-finals).

World record for Mollie O’Callaghan

World champion on Sunday in the 400m freestyle, Ariarne Titmus did not achieve the double in the final of the women’s 200m freestyle. The Australian was overtaken by her compatriot Mollie O’Callaghan. Winner in 1:52.85, the 19-year-old swimmer also set a new world record, held since 2009 by Italian Federica Pellegrini.

The youngest in the final, Summer McIntosh (16) – 4? in the 400m freestyle – won bronze. A few minutes later, the young Canadian qualified for the 200m butterfly final (3? time of the halves), where she will compete to defend her title.

The Chinese Haiyang Qin, winner of the 100m breaststroke on Monday, won his second gold medal in these Worlds in Fukuoka (Japan) by winning the final of the 50m breaststroke (26 s 29). He beat American Olympic champion Nic Fink (26.59) and another Chinese, Jiajun Sun (26.79). The day was particularly prolific for China, who became world champions in the 4 × 100 m medley mixed medley relay ahead of Australia and the United States.

In the 800m freestyle final, Ahmed Hafnaoui took revenge on Samuel Short. The Tunisian (7 min 37 s) won ahead of the Australian (7 min 37 s 76), three days after being beaten in the final of the 400m freestyle by 2 hundredths. Neck and neck over 700 meters, the other Olympic champion in the 400 m freestyle accelerated in the last round trip. American Bobby Finke, the 800m freestyle title holder, completed the podium (7 min 38 s 67). Ahmed Hafnaoui will meet his rival Samuel Short in the 1,500m freestyle (series, semis and final scheduled for July 29 and 30), an event in which the French Damien Joly and David Aubry are also expected.