This article was first published in Stuff.
The swimmer labelled “the new Michael Phelps” is the man Lewis Clareburt (Waikato-Tainui) needs to conquer to win gold.
Leon Marchand is one of the host nation’s expected Olympic Games superstars and is a red-hot favourite to win the men’s 400 metres individual medley on Monday morning (about 6.30am NZT).
The 22-year-old Frenchman broke the world record in the event last year to remove the final mark that had been held by Phelps - the most successful Olympic swimmer in history - from the record books.
Marchand trains with Phelps’ former coach Bob Bowman in the United States, and also swims in the same events the American did on his way to 28 Olympic medals, including 23 gold.
He won gold in three events (the 400 IM, 200 IM and 200 butterfly) at last year’s world championships in Japan. Clareburt will also race in the 200 IM and 200 fly in Paris.
Marchand comes from excellent swimming stock - father Xavier was a two-time Olympian, and mum Céline Bonnet also competed at the Olympics.
To beat Marchand in the final on day two of the swimming at La Defense Arena, the New Zealander who moved from Wellington to Auckland late last year to improve his training may need to get near Marchand’s world record time of 4:02.50.
That’s a lot to ask of a swimmer whose personal best in the event is 4:08.70, but Clareburt has done everything possible to try and get to Marchand’s level.
That includes training for a month in the US late last year with his rival under the guidance of Bowman.
That helped Clareburt win gold in the 400 IM at this year’s world champs in Dubai in February in a meet skipped by many of the world’s best in Olympic year.
But the 25-year-old would have been boosted by his triumph in 4:09.72, and he improved on that time when swimming 4:08.71 in Sydney when in the middle of a heavy training block and battling a bad cold.
Even if the amiable Clareburt can’t match Marchand, he will still have a great chance to earn New Zealand’s first swimming medal at the Olympics since 1996, when Danyon Loader won double gold in Atlanta.
Among his other rivals will be the US duo of Carson Foster and Chase Kalisz, Daiya Seto of Japan, Max Litchfield (Great Britain) and Australia’s Brandon Smith.
Clareburt though will be aiming to pile the pressure on Marchand.
“This is his home Olympics, he’s the world record [holder] and he’s going in as the guy who everyone wants to beat,” Clareburt said.
“He’s going to have a lot of pressure on his back and I’m an underdog compared to him. Everywhere we go around this village, [whenever] we find a French person, they’re telling us about Leon Marchand.
“He’s a big name and he’s the guy we all want to beat — it’s exciting.”