The Olympic men’s 200m freestyle race in swimming will feature a man who has already won an Olympic gold medal. German Lukas Martens grabbed gold in the 400m freestyle event and will look for a second gold in the 200m race. But he is an underdog to someone expected to blast past the rest of the field. Here, we break down the men’s 200m freestyle and pick a winner for what could be a straightforward race in the pool from Paris.
Olympic Men’s 200m Freestyle Betting Odds
| Swimmer | Gold Medal Odds |
| David Popovici | -340 |
| Lukas Martens | +800 |
| Duncan Scott | +900 |
| Matthew Richards | +1000 |
| Hwang Sun-Woo | +1600 |
| Luke Hobson | +2000 |
| Danas Rapsys | +2000 |
| Lucas Henveaux | +2500 |
| Maximillian Giuliani | +4000 |
| Katsuhiro Matsumoto | +5000 |
| Kim Woo-Min | +10000 |
| Thomas Neil | +10000 |
| Rafael Miroslaw | +10000 |
Odds from DraftKings Sportsbook
The clear favorite to win the gold medal in the Olympic men’s 200m freestyle event is David Popovici of Romania. He already won the 200m freestyle gold at this year’s European championships in Belgrade. At a shorter distance, Popovici is more explosive than Germany’s Lukas Martens, which is expected to make the difference in this race. That explains the odds for this event despite Martens’ success in the 400 free to start his Olympic Games.
Olympic Men’s 200m Freestyle Major Storylines
The biggest storyline going into this race is whether Martens can find a way to win a second gold medal in as many freestyle swimming events to start the Paris Olympics. Obviously, the odds do not suggest that he has a great chance to do that. But it would be an historic accomplishment if Martens could take the gold in the 200 free after getting the job done in convincing fashion in the 400m freestyle.
Popovici is also a massive storyline going into this race, as he could end up in a similar situation as Martens after this race is done. Popovici is among the favorites to win the men’s 100m freestyle later in the Olympic swim meet. If he can get the job done in this race he has a real shot at winning a pair of individual freestyle golds, which would make him one of the breakout stars of the Paris Games.
Olympic Men’s 200m Freestyle Medal Contenders
Popovici and Martens are the top-two contenders for medals in this race, but there are several swimmers who could come away with medals for themselves here. A pair of Brits in Duncan Scott and Matthew Richards both have a chance to earn medals in this race, with the potential for them to both finish in the top-three should Popovici or Martens fail to live up to expectations here.
Beyond that foursome, there are a couple of swimmers at longer odds who could medal even if they are not expected to win the race. South Korea’s Hwang Sun-Woo, American Luke Hobson, and Lithuania’s Danas Rapsys could snag a silver or bronze if they put together a great swim even if they have lower expectations than the favorites.
Men’s 200m Freestyle Betting Prediction: David Popovici (-340)
Our best bet to win the Olympic men’s 200m freestyle final on Monday is the heavy favorite. David Popovici should be able to use his explosion to pull away from Lukas Martens despite the shorter distance of the 200m freestyle format. Look for the Romanian to win his first gold medal of the Olympics, giving him a chance to grab two solo golds when all is said and done in Paris.
