Swimming: Italy's Nicolo Martinenghi storms to men's 100m breaststroke gold; Adam Peaty shares silver with Nic Fink
Nicolo Martinenghi of Italy swam the race of his life to claim the Olympic Games Paris 2024 men's 100m breaststroke title in 59.03 seconds at Paris La Defense Arena on Sunday, 28 July.
All the talk before the race may have been about a historic 'three-peat' for Team GB's Adam Peaty but the two-time Olympic swimming champion was beaten to the wall by the rapid Italian, finishing in joint-second place in 59.05 as he shared the silver medal with the USA's Nic Fink.
Martinenghi, who won bronze in the same event at Tokyo 2020, was ecstatic with his victory, which was the first by an Italian swimmer at these Games in France’s capital. After the race, he paid tribute to Peaty, who he described as an idol of his as a youngster making his way in the sport.
"That was my goal, I grew up with the gold medal on my mind since I was eight years old," he said. “And I grew up with Adam, like an idol."
The final was the last of an evening that had the Paris crowd on its feet, following on from home favourite Leon Marchand's gold medal and Olympic record in the 400m Individual Medley.
With such an electric atmosphere and so much at stake, it would have been easy to forgive Martinenghi for being nervous. However, it was his ability to block out the noise and rise to the occasion that led him to the Olympic gold medal in a race that was won by the smallest of margins.
"In the last 10 strokes, I saw Nic [Fink] next to me and I said, 'Now we have to fight'. It's what I love to do," Martinenghi said. "I love to race, I live to enjoy that moment and winning a gold medal in front of my friends, my family, my girlfriend and my teammates was incredible."
Adam Peaty: 'My love for my family and my love for my son is greater than a love of a gold medal'
Peaty has spoken publicly about his struggles with mental health and alcohol issues but has since turned his life around and entered the final as the fastest qualifier.
And while the chance for a historic three-peat - in the event he is the world record holder - eluded him in Paris, he remained positive as he spoke about how his family mean more to him than any medal he could have won at these Games.
"I'm emotional, but it's happy emotions - and I think it has tested me in ways where I can't even comprehend," he told Eurosport after the race. "So I'm happy with that and I think some people might think, 'Yes, you've got a silver medal after two gold medals', but we must remember no one ever wins three in a row because it's so, so difficult to do because you have got to be this different athlete every single time.
"And it has got to be a difficult sacrifice that sometimes as an older man you don't want to pay. My love for my family and my love for my son is greater than a love of a gold medal and unfortunately, when that is a relationship in sport, someone is going to beat you and that's just the way it is.
"But I've got so much to look forward to in my life ahead of this, whether it's in sport or whether out because of this new way I've approached things."
Swimming: Men's 100m breaststroke podium
Gold: Nicolo Martinenghi, Italy
Silver: Adam Peaty, Great Britain; Nic Fink, USA