French swimmer Léon Marchand fell short of securing his fifth gold medal at the Paris Olympics, settling for bronze after finishing third in the 4x100 medley relay final.

Marchand, who swam the breaststroke leg, couldn't prevent China from claiming victory with a time of 3:27.46 minutes, making them the new Olympic champions ahead of the United States. The US, who had won gold in this event at the last ten Olympics, had to settle for second place this time.

China's victory was largely due to the superb performance of Zhanle Pan, who won gold in the 100 freestyle in Paris with a new world record. His effort allowed China to surge from third to first place in the final two laps.

Marchand, appearing fatigued from his physically and emotionally taxing quest for four gold medals in these Games (400 IM, 200 butterfly, 200 breaststroke, and 200 IM), started the breaststroke leg in third position. He not only failed to improve France's standing but also increased their gap behind China by half a second.

The dynamic changed dramatically when Maxime Grousset took over, igniting the hopes of the crowd at La Defense Arena. His frantic strokes in the butterfly leg closed an 87-centisecond deficit in the first lap and completed the comeback in the second, putting France ahead by 0.03 seconds over the US and 0.75 seconds over China.

However, veteran swimmer Florent Manaudou, bronze medalist in the 50 freestyle, couldn't maintain the lead against China's Zhanle Pan, who delivered a sensational performance to secure China's win with a total time of 3:27.46 minutes.

The US team, clocking in at 3:28.01, saw their streak of ten consecutive victories in the 4x100 medley relay, starting from the 1984 Los Angeles Olympics, come to an end. France finished with a time of 3:28.38, earning the bronze medal. Léon Marchand celebrated this medal with the same joy as his four golds, cementing his status as the undisputed "king" of the pool at the Paris Olympics.