Christou finishes 4th in 100 backstroke

Apostolos Christou missed on a medal for a mere two-hundredths of a second, finishing 4th in the men's 100 meters backstroke in 52.41 seconds at the Paris Olympics Monday.

Italy's Tomas Ceccon won gold in 52 seconds flat, China's Xu Jiayu won silver, his second after Rio, in 52.32 and Rio gold medalist Ryan Murphy of the US was third in 52.39.

Christou's 4th place was the best ever result achieved by a Greek swimmer in the pool.

"I was upset, because (the medal) was so close…Maybe I got stuck in my turn. I had no strength to go any faster," Christou, whose personal best is 52.09, told state broadcaster ERT after the race. He added that he expected a medal.

Christou will try again in the 2028 Olympics, at Los Angeles, although he will be 31 by then, an advanced age for a swimmer. "Maybe I'll take a short break," he said.