PARIS – Cal alum Ryan Murphy became just the second individual in history to earn a medal in the 100-meter backstroke in three consecutive Olympic Games on Monday at Paris La Defense Arena.

Murphy continued to carve out his legacy as one of the best backstrokers ever by winning the bronze medal in a time of 52.39. It marked the second straight Olympics he has won the bronze in the 100 back after taking the gold medal in his Olympic debut in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, in 2016.

Murphy held the lead with about 10 meters to go before being overtaken by winner Thomas Ceccono of Italy and China's Jiayu Xu.

"That's a really talented field," Murphy said. "Getting third behind Thomas and Jiayu – they are both really talented guys. They've been really good in this sport for a long time,; they deal well with pressure. So, me being third in the world behind them – I'm really not disappointed in that."

Murphy has now swam in five individual backstroke events in his Olympic career and has earned medals in all five of them. In addition to his accomplishments in the 100 back, he also has a gold medal (2016) and silver medal (2021) in the 200 back.

Murphy, who will begin his quest for another medal in the 200 back on Wednesday, also has two Olympic gold medals to his credit on American relay teams.