The German team has its first gold medalist: swimmer Lukas Märtens became the Olympic champion in the 400-meter freestyle. In the women’s event, Ariarne Titmus triumphed in the same distance on Saturday (July 27, 2024).
The first day of the swimming competitions at the 2024 Olympic Games in Paris began with a German athlete, Lukas Märtens, in the spotlight. As the fastest qualifier from the preliminary round, he had confirmed his status as the leading gold contender in the 400 meter freestyle, previously achieving the sixth fastest time in history during this year’s German Championships.
In April, Märtens swam a time of 3:40.33 minutes, which positioned him as the number one contender in Paris. He even aimed to break Paul Biedermann’s world record from 2009, being just 0.26 seconds away at the German Championship. His performance raised expectations that he could achieve a double victory—demonstrated in the finals on Saturday evening.
Märtens starts quickly and maintains the lead
Märtens began his race from lane four, having the best time in the preliminary heats. He got off to a blazing start, taking the lead after the first lap with a time that was under Biedermann’s world record. The 22-year-old took significant risks, distancing himself from his competitors, and was over 2.5 seconds ahead of the all-time best time at the halfway mark. Only South Korean swimmer Woomin Kim managed to keep pace with him.
With 100 meters left in the race, Märtens was 0.61 seconds ahead of the second-place swimmer, making him a strong contender for winning the first German gold medal since Michael Groß’s victory 36 years ago in Seoul. Märtens succeeded, finishing with a time of 3:41.78 minutes, narrowly missing the world record but winning by a substantial margin. He became the first German Olympic champion of the Paris Games.
“I have developed so much over the past few years; it was already going phenomenally—this is the culmination,” Märtens stated in an interview with Sportschau. “I swam bravely; I had to take on the challenge from the beginning. Being on the winner’s podium was so nice; so many thoughts, emotions, and people who have supported me come to mind. It’s wonderful.”
Silver went to New Zealander Elijah Winnington (+0.43 seconds), followed by Kim (+0.72). Oliver Klemet finished in seventh place with a time of 3:46.59 minutes.
Köhler finishes fourth in the final
Earlier in the evening, Angelina Köhler also competed in the La Défense Arena in Paris. In the semifinals of the 100-meter butterfly—the event in which the 23-year-old previously won World Championship gold in February—she aimed to finish in the top eight to qualify for the finals on Sunday (July 28, 2024).
She achieved her goal, finishing second in her heat with a time of 56.55 seconds, trailing only the remarkable Walsh, who set a new Olympic record of 55.38 seconds. Overall, Köhler secured fourth place, confirming that she has a strong chance of winning a medal in the final. “That was my big dream; now I’ve finally accomplished it. I’m extremely grateful,” Köhler said in an interview with Sportschau regarding her advance to the final.
Imoudu qualifies in the swim
There was also exciting news for the German team in breaststroke. Lucas Matzerath qualified for the final in the 100-meter breaststroke on Sunday (July 27, 2024), finishing seventh with a time of 59.31 seconds—he will not be the only DSV swimmer in the final.
More than an hour after the semifinals, Melvin Imoudu also reached the final swim, finishing eighth, ahead of Ludovico Viberti (Italy), and secured his place in the final with a lead of 0.21 seconds.
Titmus pulls ahead of Ledecky and Gose with a German record
Following Märtens’ gold race, the much-anticipated “race of the century” took place. The 400-meter freestyle featured a head-to-head competition between Katie Ledecky (USA), Summer McIntosh (Canada), and Ariarne Titmus, all of whom have previously held world records in this distance, with Titmus currently being the record holder.
Titmus dominated the race, similar to her performance at the Tokyo Olympics, finishing first in 3:57.49 minutes, leaving McIntosh trailing by 0.88 seconds. Ledecky (+3.37 seconds), who aimed to increase her gold medal count to nine Olympic victories across the 800 and 1500 meters, still managed to secure a bronze medal in third place.
Isabel Gose also had a commendable performance, finishing fifth and setting a new German record with a time of 4:02.14 minutes, making her the fastest European in the race. However, like Ledecky, her strengths lie in the longer distances.
Another German record for the men’s relay
Later in the evening, the Australian women’s team celebrated once again. In the 4×100-meter relay, Mollie O’Callaghan, Shayna Jack, Emma McKeon, and Meg Harris clinched victory with an Olympic record time of 3:28.92 minutes, finishing ahead of the USA (+1.28 seconds) and China (+1.38 seconds).
In the men’s event, the German team, consisting of Josha Salchow, Rafael Miroslaw, Luca Armbruster, and Peter Varjasi, celebrated a significant achievement by reaching the final. They set a new German record (3:13.15 minutes) in the semifinals. While they ultimately finished seventh and were unable to contend for medals, they set another German record with a time of 3:12.29 minutes. The USA claimed gold with a time of 3:09.28 minutes, followed by Australia (+1.07 seconds) and Italy (+1.42 seconds).
The German team has its first gold medalist: swimmer Lukas Märtens became Olympic champion in the 400-meter freestyle. In the women’s event, Ariarne Titmus triumphed over the same distance on Saturday (July 27, 2024).
The first day of the swimming competitions at the 2024 Olympic Games in Paris, and right in the first medal decision, a German athlete, Lukas Märtens, was in the spotlight. As the fastest in the preliminary round, he had previously underlined that he was the big gold favorite in the 400 meter freestyle after setting the sixth fastest time of all time in the world in this discipline at the German Championships this year.
Märtens swam 3:40.33 minutes in April, and with this time he started in Paris as number one and even had his sights set on Paul Biedermann’s world record from 2009 – he was only 0.26 seconds away from winning the German championship. Now the DSV athlete could even be expected to win the double – just how well Märtens was able to put these advance praises into practice was shown in the final on Saturday evening.
Märtens starts quickly and pulls through
Märtens started on lane four as the best in the preliminary round. He got off to a furious start, and was in the lead after the first lane with a time under Biedermann’s world record. The 22-year-old took a big risk, distanced himself from his opponents, and was more than 2.5 seconds ahead of the all-time best time halfway through the race. Only the South Korean Woomin Kim was able to follow the German.
With 100 meters to go, Märtens was 0.61 seconds ahead of the second-placed swimmer and had a great chance of winning the first German gold medal since Michael Groß won 36 years ago in Seoul. And the Magdeburg swimmer won it – with a time of 3:41.78 minutes, he missed the world record but won by a clear margin. And on the first day of the competition, he became the first German Olympic champion in Paris.
“I have developed so much over the past few years, it was already going phenomenally – this is the crowning glory,” said Märtens in an interview with Sportschau. “I swam the race bravely, I had to tackle it from the beginning. It was so nice to be on the winner’s podium, so many thoughts, feelings and people who have accompanied me come into your head. It’s wonderful.”
Silver went to New Zealander Elijah Winnington (+0.43 seconds) ahead of Kim (+0.72). Oliver Klemet finished seventh with a time of 3:46.59 minutes.
Köhler fourth in the final
Previously, Angelina Köhler, among others, had opened the evening in the La Défense Arena in Paris. In the semifinals of the 100-meter butterfly, where the 23-year-old won World Championship gold in February, it was all about making it into the top eight in order to swim for the medals on Sunday (July 28, 2024).
And she succeeded. In the first heat, Köhler came second in a time of 56.55 seconds behind the outstanding Walsh, who set a new Olympic record with 55.38 seconds. In the final reckoning, that was enough for fourth place and the certainty that the DSV swimmer has a good chance of winning a medal in the final. “That was my big dream, now I’ve finally done it. I’m infinitely grateful,” said Köhler in an interview with Sportschau about her entry into the final.
Imoudu qualifies in the swim
And there was also great news for the German team in breaststroke. Over 100 meters, Lucas Matzerath qualified for the final on Sunday (July 27, 2024) in seventh place in 59.31 seconds – and he will not be the only DSV athlete there.
Over an hour after the semifinals, Melvin Imoudu also made it into the final swim, finishing in eighth place against Ludovico Viberti (Italy) – and was able to secure his place in the final with a lead of 0.21 seconds.
Titmus distances Ledecky, Gose with German record
After Märtens’ gold race, the “race of the century”, as it had been called internationally beforehand, was on the program. The 400 meter freestyle also featured a three-way battle between Katie Ledecky (USA), Summer McIntosh (Canada), and Ariarne Titmus, all of whom held the world record over this distance at one time or, in Titmus’ case, are the current holders of the record.
And the Australian didn’t give her competitors a chance. As at the Olympic Games in Tokyo, Titmus clearly distanced herself from the following swimmers, finishing first after 3:57.49 minutes, with McIntosh following 0.88 seconds later. Ledecky (+3.37 seconds), who aims to improve her gold stats to nine Olympic victories over 800 and 1500 meters, still took home the bronze medal in third place.
Isabel Gose achieved a respectable result, not only finishing fifth, but also setting a new German record with a time of 4:02.14 minutes and being the best European in the race. Like Ledecky, however, the longer distances are her specialty.
Another German record for the men’s relay
Late in the evening, the Australian women were able to celebrate again. In the 4×100-meter relay, Mollie O’Callaghan, Shayna Jack, Emma McKeon, and Meg Harris won with an Olympic record (3:28.92 minutes) ahead of the USA (+1.28 seconds) and China (+1.38 seconds).
In the men’s event, reaching the final was a great success for the German quartet Josha Salchow, Rafael Miroslaw, Luca Armbruster, and Peter Varjasi, who swam a German record (3:13.15 minutes) in the semi-finals. As expected, they had nothing to do with the medals and came seventh – but they were once again celebrating a German record (3:12.29 minutes). The USA (3:09.28 minutes) took gold ahead of Australia (+1.07 seconds) and Italy (+1.42 seconds).