The US women's team pose with their swimming silver medals

(L-R) The USA's Erin Gemmell, Katie Ledecky, Paige Madden, and Claire Weinstein celebrating their silver medal. Credit: Sipa US/Alamy Live News

Madden helps USA to team silver in thrilling Women’s 4x200m event

Current Loughborough University student Paige Madden helped the United States to silver in an absorbing Women’s 4x200m Relay Final in Paris.

The 25-year-old swimmer produced a strong second leg in La Défense Arena as the US touched the wall in 7:40.86.

Australia took gold in a games record of 7:38.08 and China claimed bronze in 7:42.34.

There was a fifth-place finish for Great Britain which featured Loughborough-linked swimmers Freya Colbert and Abbie Wood in its roster (7:48.23). Current student Freya Colbert recorded a personal best of 1:55.95 in the opening leg for GB.

Madden, who trains as part of Ian Hulme’s group at the University, has now added another games medal to her collection after taking silver in the same event at Tokyo.

Her silverware in Paris sees Loughborough’s growing medal count now totalling three gold, two silver, and one bronze.

For all the latest Loughborough news around major global sporting events, visit the University’s dedicated website here: https://www.lboro.ac.uk/sport/athletes-global-stage/

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Notes for editors

Press release reference number: 24/120

Loughborough is one of the country’s leading universities, with an international reputation for research that matters, excellence in teaching, strong links with industry, and unrivalled achievement in sport and its underpinning academic disciplines. 

It has been awarded five stars in the independent QS Stars university rating scheme and named the best university in the world for sports-related subjects in the 2024 QS World University Rankings – the eighth year running. 

Loughborough is ranked 6th in The UK Complete University Guide 2025, 10th in the Guardian University League Table 2024 and 10th in the Times and Sunday Times Good University Guide 2024. 

Loughborough is consistently ranked in the top twenty of UK universities in the Times Higher Education’s ‘table of tables’, and in the Research Excellence Framework (REF) 2021 over 90% of its research was rated as ‘world-leading’ or ‘internationally-excellent’. In recognition of its contribution to the sector, Loughborough has been awarded seven Queen's Anniversary Prizes. 

The Loughborough University London campus is based on the Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park and offers postgraduate and executive-level education, as well as research and enterprise opportunities. It is home to influential thought leaders, pioneering researchers and creative innovators who provide students with the highest quality of teaching and the very latest in modern thinking. 

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