Britons and Borodin win golds on first day of European Championships in Paris

The European Aquatics Championships in Paris saw British relays and Russia's Ilia Borodin claim top honors on the opening final day. The British women's 4x200m freestyle relay team, featuring Freya Colbert, Abbie Wood, Leah Schlosshan, and Freya Anderson, dominated the event, finishing with a time of 7 minutes 45.93 seconds, just shy of the continental record. Hungary secured the silver medal, while Russia, competing under a neutral status, took bronze, edging out Germany by a mere hundredth of a second.

Following the women's success, the British men's 4x200m freestyle relay team also clinched gold. Matthew Richards, Jack McMillan, James Guy, and Duncan Scott powered to victory in 7 minutes 01.52 seconds. The home crowd's favorite, France, with four-time Olympic champion Léon Marchand, took silver. Germany secured the bronze medal, matching France's time but finishing behind on countback.

In the men's 400m individual medley, Russian swimmer Ilia Borodin capitalized on the withdrawal of French favorite Léon Marchand. Borodin, who competed neutrally, won the gold medal with a time of 4:08.17 minutes. Alberto Razzetti of Italy took silver, and Britain's Max Litchfield claimed the bronze. Borodin, a former junior rival of Marchand, expressed a desire to compete against the Olympic champion, but Marchand was sidelined by an adductor injury that significantly impacts his breaststroke ability.