Leon Marchand Clocks PB in 100 Fly (52.42), Loses First Race in Over a Year (100 Back)

Arizona State vs. NC State (LCM Exhibition)

An unscored LCM exhibition held the morning after an energetic dual meet between Arizona State and NC State did not produce many lifetime bests on Saturday at Mona Plummer Aquatics Center. But as is so often the case, Leon Marchand was the exception.

The 21-year-old Frenchman won the 100-meter butterfly with a personal-best 52.42, shaving 0.02 seconds off of his previous-best 52.44 from the Spanish Summer Junior National Championships last July. Marchand beat ASU teammate Ilya Kharun (52.79), who was about a second and a half slower than his personal-best 51.22 from the World Championships in July. Kharun added an individual victory in the 200 fly (1:57.94) and a 6th-place finish in the 50 free (23.36) that was just off his lifetime best (23.31).

Marchand also won the 200 free (1:49.16) and placed 3rd in the 100 back (55.32) behind ASU sophomore Hubert Kos (54.76) and NC State fifth-year Kacper Stokowski (54.07). Marchand, who didn’t have a 100-meter back swim on record entering the weekend, lost his first race since last year’s runner-up finish in the 200 fly behind world record holder Kristof Milak at the 2022 World Championships.

Related: Leon Marchand Becomes 1st NCAA Champ Since Natalie Coughlin to Complete Perfect Season

Kos, the reigning world champion in the 200 back, owns a best 100 back time of 53.11 from Worlds this year while Stokowski has been as fast as 53.74 in April.

NC State freshman Quintin McCarty won the 50 free (22.82), ASU junior Patrick Sammon triumphed in the 100 free (49.67), and ASU fifth-year Jack Dolan tallied runner-up finishes in both sprint free events (22.86/49.85). Sun Devils sprint star Jonny Kulow was absent this weekend while competing for the U.S. at the Pan American Games in Santiago, Chile, where he posted a 47.44 100 free relay split as well as a personal-best 48.38 flat start en route to a tie for silver with American teammate Brooks Curry.

The NC State men picked up other individual wins courtesy of Ross Dant in the 400 free (3:54.67) and JT Ewing in the 200 back (1:58.86).

NC State fifth-year Katharine Berkoff cruised to victory in the 100 backstroke (59.19) and ASU senior secured the 200 fly title in 2:13.16. NC State senior Abby Arens clocked a 1:00.24 en route to the 100 fly win, and ASU sophomore Deniz Ertan swept the 400 free (4:15.66) and 800 free (8:44.01).

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Seth
11 months ago

Leon is a beast!

Eagleswim
11 months ago

Would this count against a second undefeated season even though it was an unscored exhibition meet?

Admin
Reply to  Eagleswim
11 months ago

IDK. Coaches constantly tell me that unscored exhibition meets count. I don’t know if it was exhibition or not versus just unscored. Both teams were there?

It’s a tough one. I tend toward it counts but IDK we have to figure out what the consistency is.

Michael Andrew Wilson
11 months ago

Alt headline: Backstroke world champion gets narrow win over Leon Marchand in the 100 back, Marchand’s 10th-best event

Sub13
Reply to  Michael Andrew Wilson
11 months ago

Kos didn’t win, Stokowski did, and he’s not a world champion. He came 14th at worlds.

Swimmka
Reply to  Sub13
11 months ago

Kos was 7th at WC!

Michael Andrew Wilson
Reply to  Swimmka
11 months ago

He did win the 200 back there.

Michael Andrew Wilson
Reply to  Sub13
11 months ago

Ha, you’re right. I clearly didn’t read to the end of the sentence.

Kos did win a backstroke event at worlds – the 200. What I was really getting at was that only the best of the best can beat Marchand at any event, even if it’s his worst and their best.

Alex Wilson
11 months ago

There are videos of some of the races on You Tube at “poolside perspective”

SwimmerK
Reply to  Alex Wilson
11 months ago

Check out the 50, looked like McCarty swam in a brief?

Owlmando
11 months ago

Based off these times im assuming theyre all in heavy training?

Swim2win
Reply to  Owlmando
11 months ago

No they’re tapered and ready to fire off the best swims of the year in late October.

Boomer
Reply to  Swim2win
11 months ago

McKeown: hold my beer

Owlmando
Reply to  Swim2win
11 months ago

Merely asked to fish and see if anyone had insight to what their training cycle is like, but yes very clever of you there stating the obvious ah ah ah

Alex Wilson
Reply to  Owlmando
11 months ago

Yes! They are in heavy training! I was on the pool deck.

Alex Wilson
Reply to  Owlmando
11 months ago

Heavy Training or not, ASU’s Jonny Kulow, who was doing the same heavy training till he left to head south has 3 Silvers and One Gold along with some PB in 4 events at the Pan Am games this week.

That guy
Reply to  Alex Wilson
11 months ago

Yea until he left and started a light taper

thezwimmer
Reply to  That guy
11 months ago

The plane ride was taper

chazoozle
Reply to  Owlmando
11 months ago

we are at the point where everyone expects a world record everytime Marchand swims

Chris
Reply to  chazoozle
11 months ago

i lol’d

Nick the biased Aussie
Reply to  chazoozle
11 months ago

While it was a great one, he had only broken one world record. One! Once!

About Riley Overend

Riley is an associate editor interested in the stories taking place outside of the pool just as much as the drama between the lane lines. A 2019 graduate of Boston College, he arrived at SwimSwam in April of 2022 after three years as a sports reporter and sports editor at newspapers …

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