David Popovici, a 21-year-old Romanian swimmer, clinched the gold medal in the 100-meter freestyle event at the European Swimming Championships held in Paris. He finished the final with a remarkable time of 46.56 seconds, setting a new championship record. His impressive performance drew immediate attention from prominent European sports outlets, including L’Equipe in France and Gazzetta dello Sport in Italy.
Roxana Fleșeru, a reporter at GSP in Paris, provided up-to-date coverage from the championships. During the race, Popovici trailed Egor Kornev initially but made a stunning comeback in the last 50 meters. He surpassed the Russian swimmer and recorded the third-fastest time in the event’s history.
This victory marks the second-best result of Popovici’s career, as he comes within 16 hundredths of a second of the world record held by Pan Zhanle at 46.40 seconds.
Reactions from L’Equipe and Gazzetta dello Sport on Popovici’s Victory
The French outlet L’Equipe highlighted the intense competition between Popovici and Kornev, noting that this win marks Popovici’s third consecutive European title in the 100-meter freestyle.
“David Popovici is the king of the 100m freestyle! In a thrilling duel with Russian swimmer Egor Kornev, the Romanian finally takes control, setting a new championship record,” they reported.
Popovici’s achievement was similarly praised by Gazzetta dello Sport, stating, “The incredible Popovici continues to affirm his position on the European throne and sets a new championship record (46.56).”
Final Standings for the 100m Freestyle at the European Championships in Paris
1. David Popovici (Romania) – 46.56 seconds
2. Egor Kornev (Russia) – 46.74 seconds
3. Kristof Milak (Hungary) – 46.87 seconds
4. Luca Hoek (Spain) – 47.39 seconds
5. Jere Hribar (Croatia) – 47.42 seconds
6. Nandor Nemeth (Hungary) – 47.47 seconds
7. Carlos D’Ambrosio (Italy) – 47.58 seconds
8. Tomas Navikonic (Lithuania) – 47.75 seconds
With this victory, David Popovici has now accumulated five gold medals at the European Championships. He becomes only the second swimmer in history to win three consecutive continental titles in the 100-meter freestyle, following the legendary Aleksandr Popov.
Popovici is set to compete next in the 200-meter freestyle event, which begins on Thursday.
