Career
Up to 2003, Leveaux competed in the junior categories, and won the title of runner-up in the 100 m freestyle and the 100 m butterfly in the European Championships in Glasgow in 2003. Having previously dominated the French junior championships, Leveaux took the silver in the 50 m butterfly event in the French open championship in 2003 held in Saint-Étienne.
In 2004, Leveaux won his first gold medal in the French Championships in the 200 m freestyle, while also taking the silver in the 100 m freestyle event. He was later chosen to join the French national swimming squad for the European Championships held in Madrid, where he helped the French relay team win the bronze medal in the 4×100 and 4×200 m freestyle events. In the individual 200 m freestyle event, Leveaux came in fifth, breaking his first French record with 1 min 48.80 seconds. Three months later, Leveaux competed on the relay team in the Athens games, in the 4×100 et 4×200 m freestyle events. Although the team failed to qualify for the final in the 4×100 m, the team came in seventh place in the 4×200 m.
Leveaux became the French runner-up in the 100 m freestyle in 2005, and participated in the World Championships in Montréal in July. He qualified for the final, but came in at eighth place. In 2006, he became national champion in the 100 m butterfly and European runner-up – he came in behind the Ukrainian Andriy Serdinov in Budapest.
At the French national championships, Leveaux managed to qualify for the 2008 Summer Olympics in the 50 m and 200 m freestyle events. Finishing fifth in the 100 m, he also qualified for the 4×100 m freestyle relay team. He set an Olympic record in the 100 m freestyle in the heats of the relay after leading off. France finished second in the final and Leveaux thus won a silver medal. Later in the week, Leveaux set an Olympic record in his preliminary 50 m freestyle heat with a time of 21.46 seconds. In the final of that event, he swam even faster (21.45 seconds) but finished behind Brazil's César Cielo Filho to take the silver medal.
After a couple of years far from his best form, Amaury Leveaux did a come back at the 2012 European championship in Debrecen (Hungary). He won the 4x100m freestyle relay with team mates Alain Bernard, Frédérick Bousquet and Jérémy Stravius. He also won a silver medal in the 200m freestyle (1 min 47 s 69). At the 2012 Olympics in London, he was the lead swimmer of the 4x100m and 4x200m freestyle relays. He won gold in the 4×100m relay, with team mates Fabien Gilot, Clement Lefert and Yannick Agnel, and silver in the 4x200m relay.
| Records | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by Roland Schoeman |
Men's 50 metres freestyle world record holder (short course) 11 December 2008 – 8 August 2009 |
Succeeded by Roland Schoeman |
| Preceded by Alain Bernard |
Men's 100 metres freestyle world record holder (short course) 12 December 2008 – |
Succeeded by Incumbent |
| Preceded by Matt Jaukovic |
Men's 50 metres butterfly world record holder (short course) 6 December 2008 – 14 November 2009 |
Succeeded by Steffen Deibler |
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