Filip Nowacki wins European 200m breaststroke title Paris; by 0.08s over Caspar Corbeau

European Aquatics Championships 2026: Filip Nowacki stages late surge to add European 200m breaststroke title to Commonwealth gold

The British swimmer, who took gold at the recent Commonwealth Games for his native island of Jersey, claimed his first senior continental medal by overtaking Caspar Corbeau in the last 25m.

Filip Nowacki has had quite the year. The 18-year-old teenager has burst on to the senior swimming scene, first upstaging mentor Adam Ramsay-Peaty at the recent Glasgow 2026 Commonwealth Games .

On Thursday (13 August), he added to his Commonwealth 200m breaststroke gold by staging a late surge at the 2026 European Aquatics Championships in Paris, France, to claim the continental title in the same event.

Nowacki trailed Netherlands’ Caspar Corbeau going into the final turn, but his last-length burst was unstoppable. He closed the gap to Corbeau quickly and touched home in 2:07.70, eight one-hundredths of a second ahead of his Dutch opponent.

It means Nowacki now has gold medals from his first two major senior international meets, with the longest breaststroke distance proving to be a happy hunting ground. These European Championships are Nowacki’s long-course debut with the senior Great Britain squad, having made his first GB team at last December’s short-course Europeans.

Austria’s Luka Mladenovic took home bronze in 2:08.91.

Nowacki said afterwards: " It’s very special. I’m over the moon. It’s a very good step in the right direction but, like I said before, it’s very important I carry a big target for next season.

“The biggest thing for me was dealing with the pressure.”

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31 July - 16 August

European Aquatics Championships | Paris | France