Having your name displayed in lights on a marquee, serving as the main character in a Netflix-style docuseries, earning a nickname that becomes part of the national vocabulary, or having talented artists create a large mural of your image in a high-traffic area of the city are all indicators that an athlete or performer has truly made it in their country.
Count David Popovici of Romania as having reached that status – again. A dramatic new mural has recently been completed on the side of a multi-story building in Timisoara, Romania, dedicated to the country’s reigning World and Olympic champion swimmer. The mural conveys a powerful message: "Write your own story through sport," inspired by courage and determination. On the wall of a multi-story building in Timisoara, Romania, a dramatic new mural has recently come to life, dedicated to the country’s reigning World and Olympic champion swimmer. The mural carries a strong message: write your own story through sport, driven by courage and determination.
“For me, David is not only a record-breaker in the pool, but also an outstanding athlete, a great competitor, and above all, a truly wonderful human being ❤️,” wrote museum expert Tomasz Madej on his post displaying the Popovici art. “This mural proves that his impact goes far beyond the swimming lanes and continues to inspire people everywhere 🌍🔥.”
The Sweet Damage Crew is the artist group that completed the work, painting on the side of a hotel in Timisoara, Romania’s leading economic, social and cultural centre in the western part of the country, along the Bega River.
It’s not the first time that the Sweet Damage Crew has immortalised the now 21-year-old in a much larger-than-life mural. The first time came in Popovici’s hometown of Bucharest. That one was painted in 2023 at the busiest corner of the country’s capital city, at 35 Stefan cel Mare Street, and included the message “Write your story through sports.”
“I try to take a different route when I have to cross the city; it embarrasses me to see my face that big,” David quipped not long after the Bucharest mural went up.
Popovici is coming off another strong swimming campaign in 2025, one where he won gold in both the men’s 100m and 200m freestyle events at the World Aquatics Championships – Singapore 2025. This achievement marks the second time he has accomplished this double, having first done so as a teenager at the 2022 World Aquatics Championships in Budapest, Hungary.
Since his impressive debut three years ago in the Hungarian capital, Popovici has achieved remarkable success. He has won four individual world championship titles and set a world record in the 100m freestyle, which China’s Pan Zhanle now holds. Additionally, he nearly broke the 200m freestyle all-time record set by Germany’s Paul Biedermann in 2009, during the "shiny suit" era of swimming. At the Paris 2024 Olympic Games, Popovici secured gold in the 200m freestyle and a bronze medal in the 100m freestyle. His victory in the 200m was so magnificent that you could hang it in the Louvre.