Britain claimed double relay gold at the European Swimming Championships after its women’s and men’s 4x200m freestyle teams topped their respective events.
The British women Freya Colbert, Abbie Wood, Leah Schlosshan and Freya Anderson won in 7 minutes 45.93 seconds, narrowly missing the continental record. Hungary took silver in 7:49.09, while Russia, competing under a neutral flag, secured bronze in 7:49.13. Germany finished fourth by just one-hundredth of a second.
Britain’s men followed with gold in 7:01.52, with Matthew Richards, Jack McMillan, James Guy and Duncan Scott securing the victory. France finished second in 7:02.23, while Germany claimed bronze in 7:02.28.
France’s team included four-time Olympic champion Leon Marchand, who said winning his first European medal as part of a relay team was particularly satisfying.
Earlier, Russia’s Ilia Borodin, competing as a neutral athlete, won the men’s 4x200m freestyle in 4:08.17. Italy’s Alberto Razzetti took silver, while Britain’s Max Litchfield won bronze.
Marchand skipped the event as he manages a lingering thigh injury that has affected his breaststroke. He remains entered in the 200m butterfly, 400m freestyle and French relays.
