20th FRENCH ELITE SHORT COURSE CHAMPIONSHIPS
The final day of action unfolded at the 2026 French Elite Championships, with a national record going down at the hands of Sacha Velly in the men’s 1500m freestyle.
Competing in the final here in Angers, 21-year-old Velly stopped the clock at a swift 14:19.11 to manhandle the field en route to gold.
The next-closest swimmer was represented by Damien Joly, who registered a result of 14:26.69, as David Aubry finished in 14:31.90 to bag the bronze.
Of note, Olympic champion Ahmed Hafnaoui of Tunisia settled for a 5th-place finish with a result of 14:31.90.
As for Velly, the open water ace erased the former French national record of 14:19.62 that Joly established at the 2022 World Championships.
Velly now ranks 3rd in the world on the season in a time that would have earned bronze at the 2024 Short Course World Championships. Additionally, he was the only man in the final to clear the World Aquatics ‘A’ standard of 14:29.29 needed to qualify for next month’s SC Worlds.
| 2 | Samuel Short |
AUS | 14:15.10 | 10/02 |
| 3 | Ahmed Jaouadi |
TUN | 14:29.94 | 10/16 |
| 4 | Bobby Finke |
USA | 14:32.14 | 10/16 |
| 5 | Lucas HENVEAUX |
BEL | 14:33.14 | 10/15 |
Following up on his 100m back stunner, University of Kentucky Wildcat Lysander Osman found gold once again in the 50m back sprint.
Osman ripped a mark of 22.77 to set himself apart from the field in the only sub-23-second result of the final.
The man who turns 21 years of age tomorrow scorched a lifetime best, destroying his former PB of 23.75 put up in October of last year.
Just like that, not only does Osman qualify for the SC World Championships, but he becomes France’s #2 performer of all time in this 50m back event.
Top 5 French Men’s LCM 50 Backstroke Performers All-Time
- Florent Manaudou – 22.22, 2014
- Lysander Osman – 22.77, 2026
- Mewen Tomac – 22.84, 2023
- Jeremy Stravius – 22.85, 2016
- Lucien Vergnes – 23.08, 2025
Osman saw Lucien Vergnes hit a time of 23.31 as the runner-up, with Jules Andre rounding out the podium in 23.46. Vergnes sneaked under the World Aquatics ‘A’ cut of 23.37 needed for Beijing.
Tomac bypassed the 50m back in favor of the 200m IM, where the 25-year-old found success in an outing of 1:54.70.
His performance represented the 6th-best of his career, tying the same time he put up for 4th place out of the prelims at the 2025 European Short Course Championships. There in Lublin, Poland, the Frenchman settled for 4th place in a final result of 1:52.79, his lifetime best.
Mathys Chouchaoui snagged silver tonight in 1:56.01, as Raphael Blamart rounded out the podium in 1:56.32. Only Tomac earned SC Worlds qualification from this evening’s final.
Of note, 17-year-old Sauveur Cristofini continued his impressive record-breaking campaign by scoring a new French Age benchmark in the 200m IM.
He earned the B-Final victory with a result of 1:57.52, a new personal best by just under half a second.
Entering this competition, the prodigy’s lifetime best rested at the 1:57.86 notched at last year’s edition of this competition, further establishing himself as the heir apparent to the French men’s swimming regime.
Additional Notes
- World champion Maxime Grousset proved too quick to catch in the men’s 100m free, clinching the title in a time of 45.51. That beat the pack by over a second, with Paul Mervant-Dufy as the next-closest competitor in 46.88, and .Clement Secchi finishing a fingernail behind in 46.90. On-fire 17-year-old Sauveur Cristofini hit a time of 47.94 to top the men’s B-final of this event. A time of 46.89 was needed to qualify for the SC Worlds, so Mervant-Dufy sneaked under that limbo line while Secchi and Cristofini, after his 200m IM national age record, also fell just shy of the benchmark.
- 27-year-old Pauline Mahieu was the top performer in the women’s 200m backstroke, hitting 2:04.01 to hold off Jeanne Lechevalier, who was also in the 2:04 range in 2:04.18 for a new French Age Record. Lou-Anne Guiton rounded out the podium in 2:07.16 to earn the bronze medal.
- Bypassing the men’s 50m back, Mewen Tomac instead took on the 200m IM, where the 25-year-old turned in a time of 1:54.70 to defeat his competitors by well over a second. Tomac’s performance this evening earned a SC Worlds bid, getting under the ‘A’ benchmark of 1:55.25 in the 6th-fastest time of his career.
- The women’s 100m IM saw Beryl Gastaldello secure yet another gold medal, with the on-fire 31-year-old getting to the wall in 57.85. She was the clear winner, with Giulia Rossi-Bene next to the wall in 59.44, as Maty Ndoye-Brouard rounded out the podium in 59.67. The women were chasing a World Aquatics ‘A’ cut of 59.65, so both Gastaldello and Rossi-Bene made the grade for Beijing.
