French sensation Leon Marchand broke the men’s 200m medley world record in winning his semi-final at the World Aquatics Championships in Singapore.

The 23-year-old won in one minute 52.69 seconds to beat the previous best of 1:54.00 set by Ryan Lochte in 2011 as he qualified for the final in style.

“I actually can’t really believe it right now,” said Marchand, who won four gold medals at the 2024 Olympics in Paris.

“I knew I was going to get close to my personal best because I felt really good today and the preparation has been pretty good so I was excited to race.

“But, 1:52 is unbelievable for me.”