Ilya Kharun wins bronze in Men’s 200m Butterfly
Posted July 31, 2024 11:45 am.
Last Updated July 31, 2024 12:02 pm.
Ilya Kharun has snapped an Olympic drought for Canadian male swimmers.
Kharun became the first Canadian man to win an Olympic swimming medal since 2012 when he captured bronze in the 200-metre butterfly Wednesday at Paris 2024.
Leon Marchand of France won gold in an Olympic-record one minute, 51.21 seconds. Hungary’s Kristof Milak was second in 1:51.75 and Kharun set a Canadian-record time in third at 1:52.80.
It is the seventh medal at the Olympics for Canada (two gold, two silver, three bronze).
The Montreal-born Kharun, 19, posted the third-fastest time in the semifinals.
The Canadian men didn’t win a swimming medal in the past two Olympics and didn’t even qualify for an event final three years ago in Tokyo.
Kharun finished fourth in last year’s world championships in 200-m butterfly.
Kharun was born in Montreal but has spent most of his life in the United States. His parents are performers with Cirque du Soleil, per Devin Heroux of CBC Olympics.
The family moved to Las Vegas around the time Kharun was one.
