In a historic achievement for Greek swimming, four Greek swimmers returned from the European Championship in Belgrade with three medals, a feat unprecedented for the country.
Among them, Stergios Bilas stood out, claiming a gold in the 50m butterfly, silver in the 50m freestyle, and bronze in the 4x100m freestyle.
Bilas, a standout swimmer from Olympiacos, confirmed his rising status in European swimming with his performances. Speaking to the Athenian-Macedonian News Agency (AP-MPA), Bilas expressed his satisfaction and ambition, saying, "I am definitely establishing myself among the best sprinters in Europe now. Winning the 50m butterfly and securing second place in the 50m freestyle was a great rehearsal for the Olympics. I am very happy to have set two personal bests, and now my goal is to perform even better at the Olympics."
Bilas set a national record in the men's 50m butterfly with a time of 23.06 seconds and a national youth record in the 50m freestyle with 21.73 seconds. He and his teammate Christian Golomeev made history by achieving Greece's first "1-2" finish in a European Championship, narrowly edging out Apostolos Christou and Vangelis Makrygiannis, who had a similar finish in the 100m backstroke.
The duo trains together under coach Aki Economou, and their success brought double joy to their team. "With Christian, we wanted to make it 1-2 and bring this joy to our coaches and partners," Bilas said, acknowledging the narrow margin by which he lost to Golomeev. "I didn't mind losing by just one centimeter (21.72 against 21.73). Christian is one of the greatest swimmers of all time and deserved to win a European Championship. This '1-2' was a magical moment for us and for all of Greece."
Bilas had already qualified for the Paris Olympics last August with a 50m freestyle time of 21.83 seconds. Despite not breaking 22 seconds this season, his performance in Belgrade has raised expectations for the upcoming Olympic Games. "We aimed to be as fast as possible leading up to the Olympics," Bilas explained. "I didn't expect to clock 21.73, which is very fast. I made a few small mistakes, so I believe I can swim even faster."
Looking ahead, Bilas is optimistic about his chances in Paris. "This time allows me to dream because it could place me in the top eight. I'll approach it race by race, first aiming to get into the top 16, and from there, each race will be different," he said. However, he sees himself peaking at the Los Angeles Olympics in 2028, where he hopes to be at the pinnacle of his career.
Read more: Greek Swimming Teams
