Australia’s first Olympic gold medal winner: Katie Ledecky of 200 meter individual swimmer and her husband, Matthew Finke, a 48-year-old Australian

Before the Summer Games, Marchand had never won a gold medal. He’s now claimed four individual gold medals in a single Olympics, putting him in a category of greatness once reserved exclusively for two Americans, Mark Spitz and Michael Phelps.

There are growing indications that swimmers from Australia, Canada and France are out pacing the stars of the US.

Katie Ledecky also dominated the women’s 1500 meter freestyle final, her signature event, and achieved a new milestone with 13 total medals — including gold, silver and bronze.

At the Tokyo Games three years ago, Finke won the gold medal in the 800-meter freestyle, and after winning a gold medal in the Paris Olympics he is the defending gold medal winner.

The American considered the strongest medal contender in Paris finished out of medal contention in the men’s 200 meter individual swimmer, an event combining freestyle, back, breaststroke and butterfly.

Smith and Dressel spoke of their change to focus on mental health and enjoyment of sport over winning gold. Dressel took a break from the sport.

Smith said that she was not responsible for what her competitors were doing, and that she was disappointed by the lack of a gold medal finish. I think that was a damn good swim on my part.”

Smith was the American who won a medal. It was a silver medal for the United States as she finished a half-second behind Australia’s winner in the women’s backstroke final.

Caeleb Dressel, 19, shattered his Olympics debut in Paris, and his victory in the 200 meter individual medley final

“Very obviously not my best work,” Dressel said after the race. “Hasn’t been my best week, I don’t need to shy away from that. It’s tough and it’s a little heartbreaking.

NANTERRE, France — When Caeleb Dressel sliced into the water Friday night at La Defense arena, he carried the mantle of America’s long-dominant swimming program.

The young Frenchman with a mop of blond hair has emerged as the next big name in international Olympic swimming after a week in Paris where he had a tumultuous home crowd.

Marchand also shattered the Olympic record with his victory this week, he held up four fingers in celebration.

“It was crazy,” Marchand said of his final individual performance in the men’s 200 meter individual medley final at Paris’s La Defense arena in a Paris suburb. “Once again the public was cheering. I was racing my last individual race. so I told myself I had to really enjoy it.”

To say the public was cheering doesn’t begin to capture the cultural moment Marchand has sparked here. The decision of the Olympics to be held in Paris has divided some French, but there’s still a lot of Marchand mania in the city. Taxi drivers talk about him. Teenagers are fond of him. At restaurants, everything stops when he races as all eyes turn to televisions showing his victories.

One twist to Marchand’s emergence as a national icon in France is the fact that his performance in the pool has been shaped largely by America’s long-dominant swimming system. Marchand lives in the U.S. most of the year and played collegiately until recently at Arizona State University.

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“I’ve had the opportunity to share a lane with him in practice for the better half of two years,” Smith said. “I’ve been able to see what he’s able to do every day in practice. He obviously has it physically, he’s incredibly talented. What sets him apart is what he has up here in his mind. It’s unlike anyone I’ve met before. This Je ne sais quois, he has this factor. He knows how to blow things up.

Notably, Marchand is coached by Bob Bowman, the legendary American swimming trainer who helped develop Michael Phelps’ talent. Reports stated that Marchand has become one of the all-time greats.

When asked about how it feels to train an athlete who will win an olympic medals, he stated that he was still red, white and blue in his heart.

We shared some wonderful moments here. Over the last three years, we’ve worked really hard. I don’t know how to do the next part (of my sports career). I think (Bowman) will really help me with that, because he knows a lot about it.