Romanian star swimmer David Popovici won the bronze medal at the European Short Course Swimming Championships in the 100m freestyle.

The gold went to the Frenchman Maxime Groussei (45.46), while the Italian Alessandro Miressi (45.51) secured the second position.

After the race, David acknowledged that the two other winners bested him this time.

"There were many waves, but it was beautiful. It's all that could be done today. The Italian and the Frenchman are still better than me. Fortunately, there are many competitions ahead, and I can't wait to be in front of them when the time comes. I'm glad I managed to finish with a medal. It was a very good challenge. I learned to cope better with stress and fatigue. I thank the organizers; I slept like a baby after last night's meeting," said Popovici, cited by G4media.ro.

"The audience was very good, and I wish for such a crowd at every competition," he added. 

Popovici, now a psychology student at the University of Bucharest, is readying for another challenge - the upcoming exam session. He also had a message for children: "Do sports, do what you love, and try to write your own story in sports. That's what I'm trying to do." 

A 300-square-meter mural of David Popovici was recently unveiled on a 9-story building located on Ștefan cel Mare Road in Bucharest.

radu@romania-insider.com

(Photo source: Facebook/David Popovici)