2025 Swammy Awards: Male Swimmer of the Year – Leon Marchand

See all of our 2025 Swammy Awards here.

Despite a truncated lead-up to the championship season, Leon Marchand had another historic performance on the global stage in 2025, leading him to earn the Swammy for Male Swimmer of the Year for the second straight time. Marchand’s 2025 honor comes on the back of one of the biggest performances of his career, and in the history of the sport.

Marchand notably began his 2025 racing campaign at the end of April following a shoulder injury in December of 2024.

That would not be the end of the injury woes for Marchand; he traveled to Australia to train with the pro group coached by Dean Boxall at the beginning of 2025 and discovered a stress fracture in his rib just weeks into his trip.

Marchand returned to Austin in March and raced in only three meets ahead of the World Championships in Singapore. He made headlines by dropping both the 200 butterfly and 200 breaststroke from his Worlds lineup, two events in which he won 2024 Olympic gold, setting his focus solely on the 200 and 400 IM.

In Singapore, Marchand had set his sights on the 200 IM, specifically on Ryan Lochte’s longstanding world record of 1:54.00, set back in 2011, and fans did not need to wait until the finals of the event to see what Marchand had in store.

In the semifinals of the 200 IM, Marchand put on an all-time performance, scorching Lochte’s 5116-day-old world record in a mind-boggling 1:52.69. The swim also lowered Marchand’s European Record of 1:54.06, which at the time was the 2nd-fastest performance in the event’s history.

From the get-go, Marchand was under record pace after the opening butterfly 50 by over three-quarters of a second. He continued to push the pace through the backstroke, turning nearly a full second ahead of Lochte’s pace at the 100. Marchand kept up his fiery pace through the breaststroke (32.13 compared to Lochte’s 33.03) and brought it home in 28.06 to put an end to the 2011 record’s hold on the event.

Split Comparison

In the finals of the 200 IM, Marchand still managed to swim under that former World Record to win the event in 1:53.68, just over six tenths ahead of Shaine Casas in 1:54.30. Marchand now holds three of the five fastest times ever in the 200 IM.

All-Time Performances, Men’s 200 IM LCM

1. Leon Marchand (FRA), 1:52.69, 2025
2. Leon Marchand (FRA), 1:53.68, 2025
3. Ryan Lochte (USA), 1:54.00, 2011
4. Leon Marchand (FRA), 1:54.06, 2024
5. Ryan Lochte (USA), 1:54.10, 2009

Marchand also raced in the 400 IM in Singapore, once again reaching the top of the podium in 4:04.73. That swim marked the 5th-fastest performance in history and his 4th-fastest of his career.

Marchand was a key piece to a pair of French relays in Singapore as well. He split a blistering 58.44 split to help drive France’s 4×100 medley relay to a national record and silver medal finish. He also added a career best 1:44.34 split on the 4×200 free relay.

The French swimming superstar raced at only three other meets, including just one stop on the World Cup (SCM) series in Carmel in October, where he earned three runner-up finishes and one 3rd place finish.

He also raced at the U.S. Open in early December, winning the 200 fly (1:52.57) and the 400 free (3:44.70) while adding a personal best time of 51.20 in the 100 fly.

In the 2025 calendar year, Marchand ranks 1st in the world in the 200 and 400 IM, 2nd in the 200 fly, 9th in the 400 free and 200 breast, 23rd in the 100 fly, tied for 31st in the 200 back, and tied for 40th in the 100 breast.

Honorable Mentions

• Hubert Kos (HUN) — Kos’ performances across all levels and meets earned him a rightful spot in the conversation for this award. He won three titles and broke two NCAA records at the 2025 NCAA Swimming and Diving Championships (43.20 in the 100 back and 1:34.21 in the 200 back). He later won a pair of medals in Singapore, the most notable being his gold in the 200 back, touching in 1:53.19, which lowered the European Record and marked the fastest time in the event in the last 10 years. He added a bronze medal in the 200 IM, with another lifetime best time of 1:55.34. Kos carried his early-season momentum into late 2025, breaking two SCM backstroke world records in Toronto to close out a stellar World Cup showing. Kos clipped the 100 back mark in 48.16 and lowered the 200 back standard in 1:45.12. Kos topped the overall standings at the World Cup with 175.8 points, earning Triple Crowns in the 50, 100 and 200 back.
• Ahmed Jaouadi (TUN) — Jaouadi began to make a name for himself late in 2024 and built on that in some significant ways throughout 2025. In Singapore, Jaouadi claimed a pair of world titles in the 800 free (7:36.88) and 1500 free (14:34.41). The 800 free was a dominant showing, clocking the third fastest swim ever and setting a new textile world record. His 1500 free was a battle with Sven Schwarz and Bobby Finke; the Tunisian pulled into the lead with just over a third of the race left to swim. Jaouadi stormed to the final touch, over 1.2 seconds faster than the field. Shortly after the World Championships, Jaouadi committed to the University of Florida, where he has already established himself as one of the fastest distance freestylers in the NCAA through his first semester in Gainesville, and should be a key swimmer to watch come NCAAs.
• David Popovici (ROU) — Popovici’s 2025 year can be highlighted by the blue-ribbon double golds in Singapore in the 100 free and 200 free; he clocked a European and Championship Record in the 100 free in 46.51 (second-fastest time in history), putting Popovici just over a tenth away from Pan Zhanle’s World Record of 46.40. The 200 free was a much tighter battle; Popovici turned over half a second slower than the leader, Luke Hobson, at the 100 mark. Popovici still sat over six tenths off of Hobson’s lead at the 150, but powered home in a scorching 26.43 to overtake the American and follow up his Olympic gold from Paris in 1:43.53. In 2025, the Romanian freestyler clocked three sub-47-second long-course 100 freestyles; he also owns five of the 10 fastest performances in the event’s history. Popovici’s 2025 deserved its flowers.