PARIS 2024 OLYMPIC GAMES: MATT RICHARDS TAKES SILVER IN THRILLING MEN’S 200M FREESTYLE AS DAVID POPOVICI SNATCHES GOLD

Great Britain’s Matt Richards missed out on gold in the men’s 200m freestyle by just 0.02 seconds to Romania’s David Popovici in a thrilling Olympic final inside the La Defense Arena.

Richards led with 25m to go but couldn’t hang on. USA’s Luke Hobson was a further 0.05 seconds behind for bronze, while Team GB’s Duncan Scott had to settle for fourth.

Great Britain’s Matthew Richards was pipped to Olympic gold in the men’s 200m freestyle by two hundredths of a second by Romania’s David Popovici.

Racing in his first individual Olympic final, Richards led with 25m to go but was unable to hang on as Popovici clamed a maiden swimming gold for his country in a time of 1:44.72.

“I can’t complain,” Richards told Eurosport. “I’m walking away from my first-ever individual at an Olympic Games with a silver medal, two hundredths away from gold.

“This time last year I was at the World Championships, I was on the right side of that touch and I won by two hundredths.

Myself and David have raced many times in that event and he’s beat me, I’ve touched him out, he’s touched me out – it’s part and parcel of the sport.

“Fundamentally I loved every minute of that. This is what I do it for, it doesn’t get much better. Over the moon at that but devastated at the same time.