Leon Marchand Clinches Prestigious L’Equipe Male World Champion of Champions Title!

Léon Marchand was chosen as L’Équipe’s male World Champion of Champions—an award presented every year by the editorial team of L’Équipe. The award has been distinguished by gender since 2012; this year celebrates the first awards for para-athletes, awarded to two swimmers: Brazil’s Gabriel dos Santos Araujo and China’s Jiang Yuyan.

Last week, Marchand was recognized as the male French Champion of Champions. Thus, he becomes only the third French individual to secure both the French and World titles in a single year, alongside Zinedine Zidane in 1998 and Renaud Lavillenie in 2014.

Men’s Champion of Champions Ranking

1. Léon Marchand (FRA), swimming — 1118 points
2. Armand Duplantis (SWE), athletics — 778 points
3. Tadej Pogačar (SLO), cycling — 759 points
4. Teddy Reiner (FRA), judo — 229 points
5. Antoine Dupont (FRA), rugby — 223 points

Marchand symbolized the host nation at the Paris Olympics this summer, securing five medals—four of those being golds in Olympic record times. He became the first swimmer since Kornelia Ender in 1976 to clinch two Olympic golds in a single session; during the final event of the meet, he participated in the breaststroke for France’s men’s 4×100 medley relay, supporting the team to a bronze medal in a national record.

These honors contributed to him amassing 1118 points in L’Équipe’s rankings, winning the title by a margin of 340 points. After defending his Olympic gold and repeatedly breaking the men’s pole vault world record this year, Sweden’s Mondo Duplantis ended second in the voting, narrowly ahead of Slovenia’s Tadej Pogačar, who became the third individual to achieve cycling’s Triple Crown by winning the Giro d’Italia, Tour de France, and World Championship in the same season.

Completing the men’s top five are two French competitors, with Teddy Reiner (Judo) and Antoine Dupont (rugby) finishing fourth and fifth in the voting.

Women’s Champion of Champions Ranking

1. Simone Biles (USA), gymnastics — 1100 points
2. Summer McIntosh (CAN), swimming — 580 points
3. Katie Ledecky (USA), swimming — 552 points
4. Sydney McLaughlin (USA), athletics — 257 points
5. Yaroslava Machuchikh (UKR), athletics — 222 points

Simone Biles achieved the top position in the women’s World Champion of Champions rankings for the fifth occasion in her career and for the second consecutive year. The most accoladed gymnast in history, she secured four additional medals in Paris, including gold in the all-around, vault, and team competitions. Biles outperformed swimmers Summer McIntosh and Katie Ledecky in the voting.

Similar to Marchand in the men’s rankings, she was the sole competitor in her category to exceed 1000 points. McIntosh—who has received numerous Canadian Athlete of the Year distinctions—achieved 580 points based on her performance in Paris, which included three golds (200 butterfly, 200 IM, 400 IM) and a silver (400 freestyle).

Ledecky marked a historic Olympic four-peat in the women’s 800 freestyle. She defended her title from Tokyo in the women’s 1500 freestyle, and her four medals from Paris established her as the most decorated female Olympic swimmer in history and the top decorated American female Olympian. She concluded third in the voting with 552 points, 52 points behind the youthful McIntosh.

Men’s Para-Sport Champion of Champions Ranking

1. Gabriel dos Santos Araujo (BRA), para-swimming — 595 points
2. Ihar Boki (BLR), para-swimming — 478 points
3. Alexandre Léauté (FRA), para-cycling — 429 points
4. Guo Jincheng (CHN), para-swimming — 402 points
5. Alexis Hanquinquant (FRA), para-triathlon — 385 points

In L’Équipe’s inaugural vote for the men’s para-sport World Champion of Champions, two para-swimmers topped the rankings. Brazil’s Gabriel dos Santos Araujo earned the first title with 595 points, while Ihar Boki secured the second position.

At just 22, Araujo clinched three gold medals at the Paris Paralympics, increasing his Paralympic medal total to six after achieving three (two golds, one silver) in Tokyo at 19 years old. He twice broke the men’s 150 IM SM2 world record in one day, reducing the mark to 3:14.02 and finishing fourth while competing up a classification in the SM3 category. He defended his Olympic titles from Tokyo, winning the 200 freestyle S2 and the 50 backstroke S2. Araujo claimed victory in both sprint backstroke events in S2, securing success in the 100 backstroke S2.

Ihar Boki is recognized as one of the most accomplished Paralympic swimmers in the Games’ history. Approved to compete as a Neutral Paralympic Athlete in Paris, it marked his fourth Paralympic event. He earned five medals, achieving gold in the 50 freestyle 13, 400 freestyle S13, 100 backstroke S13, 100 butterfly S13, and 200 IM SM13.

Para-swimmer Guo Jincheng came in fourth in the voting after capturing six medals—including four golds—at the Paralympics.

Women’s Para-Sport Champion of Champions Ranking

1. Jiang Yuyan (CHN), para-swimming — 901 points
2. Sarah Storey (GBR), para-cycling — 720 points
3. Catherine Debrunner (SUI), para-athletics — 634 points
4. Saysunee Jana (THA), para-fencing — 346 points
5. Omara Durand (CUB), para-athletics — 221 points

China’s Jiang Yuyan emerged as the most decorated competitor of the Paris Paralympics, a factor that contributed to her clinching the first women’s para-sport World Champion of Champions title. The 20-year-old set the tone during her opening event, seizing the 50 freestyle S6 Paralympic title with a world record.

She also established world records in the 100 freestyle S7 and 100 backstroke S6, accumulating an impressive seven golds at the event. Individual titles were claimed in the 50 freestyle S6, 100 freestyle S7, 400 freestyle S6, 100 backstroke S6, and 50 butterfly S6, in addition to relay golds in the mixed 4×50 freestyle relay and mixed 4×50 medley relay. Jiang’s medal tally from Paris elevates her career total of Paralympic medals to 11.

Jiang was the only female para-swimmer featured in the top five. Following her, Great Britain’s Sarah Storey secured second place with 720 points while Jiang amassed 901. Catherine Debrunner completed the top three, with Saysunee Jana and Omara Durand in fourth and fifth places respectively in the voting.