By Clémence T – Published on August 20, 2024 at 4:30 p.m.
Olympic medalist Léon Marchand has unwittingly found himself at the heart of a controversy involving China. All because of a gesture…
The Paris 2024 Olympic Games will have been a real success. Not only did the opening and closing ceremonies captivate the whole world, but the athletes also made us dream. And we can say that French athletes defended themselves extremely well. It is impossible not to mention Florent Manaudou or Léon Marchand who achieved the incredible feat of winning five medals, including four gold and one bronze, no less.
Léon Marchand’s happiness after winning gold
After years of training, Léon Marchand’s efforts finally paid off. It was with undisguised joy that the Toulouse native spoke once he had won his first two medals: “What happiness! Actually, it was my Christmas present today. I get up early in the morning. There’s a lot of suffering all year round, so these kinds of things, I make the most of them.”.
This time, speaking to Midi Libre, the man who spoke about his physique shared his happiness after winning his fourth gold medal. “It was crazy again! I have a lot to say, but it’s true that the public was still there of course. It was my last individual final, so I said to myself, I really have to enjoy it.”he had then commented.
Olympic champion at the heart of controversy at the Paris Olympics
But as we know, popularity doesn’t only have good sides. It is not uncommon for controversies to arise when a person is propelled to the rank of world star. This is exactly what happened with Léon Marchand. At 22, the Olympic medalist, who has also been compared to Kylian Mbappé, found himself in the middle of a scandal, despite himself. At least for the Chinese population.
Because in fact, the young swimmer was accused of having deliberately avoided shaking hands with Zhu Zhigen, coach of the Chinese team. And this, once the final of the 200 meters medley is over. It should be noted that China has been pinned recently for numerous doping controversies as well as strong suspicions surrounding its athletes.
Leon Marchand apologizes in person to the Chinese coach
One thing is certain, Léon Marchand could have done without this controversy. Fortunately, it did not have time to take on a monstrous scale. And for good reason, the Olympic medalist quickly reacted by going apologize to Chinese coach shaking his hand and exchanging a gift. Enough to prove that it was nothing more or less than a trivial misunderstanding. Leon simply hadn’t noticed the outstretched hand. Zhu Zhigen’s greetings to other people. The reputation of our national Leon Marchand therefore remains intact.
