Marchand is the Olympic hosts' big hope after last year demolishing Michael Phelps' 15-year-old world record in a phenomenal 4min 2.50sec.
The 22-year-old, trained by Phelps' old coach Bob Bowman, had not dipped under 4:10 this year as a number of his rivals did, piling on the pressure.
He rose to the occasion on day two at a packed La Defense Arena to touch in 4:08.30 as a raucous crowd went wild, more than a second clear of Britain's Max Lichfield and two seconds ahead of Japanese veteran Daiya Seto. Читать дальше...