Swimming: Lisa Pou follows Singapore medal with 10km European Cup win in Paris
Lisa Pou on the podium in Paris at the European Open Water Swimming Cup © European aquatics
The Monegasque swimmer continued her international success by winning the third leg of the European Open Water Swimming Cup in the French capital.
Less than two weeks after making Monegasque sporting history with a world bronze medal in Singapore – the Principality’s first international medal in any sport – Lisa Pou was back in the water at La Villette. The competition was initially scheduled to take place in the Grenelle branch of the Seine, but had to be relocated due to adverse weather conditions that affected water quality in the Parisian river.
A show of tactical strength
The 26-year-old executed a perfectly controlled race over the 10-kilometre open water course. In a thrilling finish, she beat Italy’s Linda Caponi in the sprint by just six hundredths of a second (1 hour 54 minutes 49 seconds 28 hundredths vs 1 hour 54 minutes 49 seconds 35 hundredths), with Spain’s Candela Sanchez Lora a further 24 seconds behind. The performance is in contrast to her 18th place finish at the Paris 2024 Olympic Games on the same course in the Seine.
Constant progress with family support
Trained by her father Michel since joining AS Monaco Natation in 2023, Lisa Pou is consolidating her rise to European prominence. Born in Fréjus, she had already shown what she was capable of in February with a ninth place in the world in Doha, which earned her the Olympic qualification.
This latest victory is a perfect continuation of her recent successes and places Monaco firmly on the international open water swimming map. After Barcelona on 20 September, she will head to Razanac in Croatia on 27 September to finish off her European season.