Léon Marchand Enters French Sporting History at the Olympics

PARIS — At every Olympic Games, one of the sayings is that the Games don’t get truly underway until the home country has something to cheer about.

This summer in Paris, the French public have had plenty to cheer about, which is one of the reasons why to this point the Games has been an unqualified success for the hosts and the International Olympic Committee.

Entering Thursday, France had 26 medals, second to the United States’ 30. France’s eight gold medals is second to China’s 10.

It’s not just the medals — it’s the way that France has won the medals. It started early on in the Games when the men’s rugby sevens team beat two-time defending champion Fiji in front of a packed Stade de France.

But the crescendo may have been Wednesday night, when swimming superstar Leon Marchand because the first swimmer to win two events in the same session since 1976. Marchand set Olympic records in winning both the 200-meter butterfly and 200 breaststroke, having earlier won the 400 individual medley on Sunday.

“It was insane to live this as a French person,” Marchand said.

It was insane to watch, as an American.

La Defense Arena was packed again on Wednesday night and in a change from most nights, the U.S. crowd was outnumbered. The overflow press area was filled to the top with production assistants working as volunteers at the Games who had the night off and wanted to watch their hero.

And when Marchand rallied in the final length of the pool to beat world-record holder and defending Olympic champion Kristóf Milák in the 200 fly, La Defense Arena rocked with a noise not often experienced in any venue at any time. The only noise that was the same so far at these Games was the rugby match on Saturday.

But then — Marchand, after a stirring rendition of La Marseillaise sung by the crowd for his first medal ceremony, eschewed the traditional lap of honor to prepare for the breaststroke. In that race he cruised, drawing on the crowd screaming ‘ALLEZ!’ each time he came up for breath.

 “During my first final, unfortunately, I was not able to completely enjoy it because I needed to keep some energy,” he said. “But it was a crazy thing because the public is always present. And I shared an incredible moment with everyone.”

The chance to host one of the world’s largest sporting events has given the chance for Paris and the host country to put a spotlight on its sports sector within one of the biggest activations of the Olympic Summer Games.

Club France is the largest fan zone for the Summer Games. With a series of activations ranging from tennis to cycling and photos with the Olympic torch, the Grande Halle de la Villette, typically an exhibition venue, has been transformed as a watch party for those who want to follow the Games.

“I’ve never felt more French,” said Zina Lemiere, a 57-year-old sporting a beanie in the national colors, earlier this week. One can only imagine how she felt after watching Marchand on Wednesday night.

Every night, the fan zone really turns into a club and medal-winning French athletes often come to the venue to celebrate with fans. Wild scenes of celebration following the rugby sevens team’s gold medal victory went viral throughout France on Saturday.

Those within the business ranks in French government used Club France to host an event on Wednesday, mixing the fan activation aspect up above with promoting businesses in the auditorium below.

“Club France really is the living heart of the Games,” said Olivier Ferraton, a representative of the French Sport Sector. “This is where athletes come to celebrate their victories. This particular sector is something that we’re very proud of.”

“There’s always the legacy of the Games,” Ferraton added. “Everything that will stay with us after the event has consequences for tourism for France. … It was important not to fail.”

So far, they have done anything but.