Swimmer Ryan Murphy earned a bronze medal in men's 100m backstroke in Paris Monday night, earning a medal for the third Olympics in a row.
Murphy, a Chicago-born Florida transplant, finished with a time of 52.39 seconds, .39 seconds behind gold medal winner Thomas Ceccon of Italy. China's Jiayu Xu won silver with a time of 52.32 seconds.
Murphy, a Jacksonville native, is the first man to medal in three consecutive Olympic games in the men’s 100-meter backstroke since 1972.
“It’s unbelievable. There’s so many incredible people who have come through this sport," Murphy said. "I put a ton of work in to be at the top of the world over the last eight years and to see that shine through at the Olympics is really awesome."
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At 29 years old, this is Murphy's seventh Olympic medal, having won three gold in Rio and a gold, bronze and silver in Tokyo.
For the first time since Rio, his family, including his wife, were in the stands – and she had some exciting news for him right after the medal ceremony.
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“My wife just told me we are having a baby girl, that’s probably better news than winning the bronze medal – so an awesome night overall," he said.
He will have another chance at a medal in the men's 200m backstroke. And when that race is in the books, he'll enjoy all that Paris has to offer.
"It’s three days in, it’s a stressful meet, I have a lot of races ahead of me," he said. "I’ll stay focused and relax after."
