[89], Ledecky began 2021 at the TYR Pro Swim Series at San Antonio, Texas. She also took bronze in the 200-meter freestyle and silver in the 4x200-meter freestyle. On the third day of the meet, Ledecky set her fourth meet record in the 400-meter freestyle prelim heats with a time of 4:03.09. Ledecky provided the US with an early lead, swimming the first leg in a personal best of 1:56.32. Shes kind of a freak athlete. The Australian, who beat Ledecky to 400m freestyle gold on Monday, also took victory in Wednesday's 200m freestyle final, with Hong Kong's Siobhan Haughey in second and Canada's Penny Olesiak. Some days she left him absolutely demolished and approached record paces in the middle of exhausting workouts. Katie just dives in headfirst and really forces you to get the most out of practice. Katie Ledecky heads to Tokyo Olympics - The Washington Post Aussie Terminator takes out Katie Ledecky in first Olympics matchup The section also will be available for purchase at latimes.com/store. [77], In July 2018, at the US National Swimming Championships, Ledecky qualified for the 2018 Pan Pacific Championships by finishing first in the 200-,[78] 400-, and 800-meter freestyle.[79]. The Transformation Of Katie Ledecky From Toddler To 24 Years Old [15] She was raised Catholic. Her combined 20 individual titles at the Olympics (6) and World Aquatics Championships (14) is also a record for female swimmers. Ledecky leaves some of the most experienced people in swimming grasping for the secret to her dominance. The Washington athlete is also holds the 800m and 1500m freestyle world records, and owns 18 of the 20 fastest 1500m freestyle times ever. 578K followers. She got her degree instead", "What's Next For Super Olympian Katie Ledecky? A lot of people have the tendency to want to protect themselves in their training, Sweetser said. On the fifth day of competition, Ledecky, with Leah Smith, Mallory Comerford, and Melanie Margalis won gold in the 4200-meter freestyle relay. This was Ledecky's first international loss in a final in individual event. During the 201617 NCAA season, Ledecky set 12 NCAA records and nine American records while swimming as a freshman for Stanford University. Midway through the 25-meter journeys at the Palisades Swim and Tennis Club in Cabin John, Md., shed grab a lane line and catch her breath like so many other 6-year-olds figuring out how to swim. [48], In her only event on the fourth day of competition, the 200-meter freestyle, Ledecky won her third gold medal of the meet, winning in a time of 1:55.16. Her face was red. [107], On day 4, June 16, she won both the 200m and 1500m freestyle finals in the evening. [66], Following the season, Ledecky became the first freshman in 35 years to receive the Honda Cup, which recognizes the nation's top female collegiate athlete.[67]. Having already set 11 world records, she is a favorite to win at the Rio Olympics in the women's 200-, 400- and. At the 2013 World Championships, Ledecky won gold in the 400-, 800-, and 1500-meter freestyle, and in the 4200-meter freestyle relay, and set two world records. At the 2016 United States Olympic Trials in Omaha, Nebraska, Ledecky won the 200-, 400- and 800-meter freestyles to qualify for her second Olympic team. She wasnt a great puller. [17] During her high-school swimming career, Ledecky twice set the American and US Open record in the 500-yard freestyle, and she twice set the national high-school record in the 200-yard freestyle. [87] Ledecky withdrew from the 800-meter freestyle race due to illness. Figure Skating championships. Her six individual gold medals are the most of any female Olympic swimmer and female US Olympian, and the second-most of all Olympic swimmers behind Michael Phelps. Trust me, Gemmell said. At the 750-meter mark, Ledecky was 3.42 seconds ahead of Mireia Belmonte Garca, and 0.31 seconds under world record pace. The world record margin for the 12 other individual events in the Olympic program is 0.44%. Ledecky uses a short left stroke, followed by a long right one, while breathing on her right side every other stroke, and repeating the pattern. [123] This was Ledecky's first loss in an individual event at the Olympics. In Budapest, Ledecky broke the World Aquatics Championships' all-time female gold medal record, winning five golds and one silver to bring her career title total to 14. They realized the goals, lofty as they might seem for a teenager, were too pedestrian. On the first day of competition, Ledecky led Australian Ariarne Titmus into the final wall of the 400-meter freestyle final before fading to second. [127][128] In the finals of these two events, Ledecky failed to reach the podium for the 200 m freestyle, placing 5th behind Titmus, Haughey, Oleksiak, and Yang, but placed 1st in the 1500 m race, leading teammate Erica Sullivan (silver) by 4 seconds, clinching her first gold medal of the Games. This started as a child. Shes just doing it better than everybody else.. In her third, and first relay event of her international career, the 4200-meter freestyle, Ledecky and teammates Shannon Vreeland, Karlee Bispo, and Missy Franklin won gold in 7:45.14. Some of the boys said, Jon, get her out of our lanes. The Americans (Simone Manuel, Ledecky, Melanie Margalis and Katie McLaughlin) set a new American record and swam under the existing world record with a time of 7:41.87, yet placed second to the Australian team (7:41.50). [61] On the meet's third day, she won the 400-yard individual medley in a new American record of 3:57.68 before finishing second to teammate Simone Manuel in the 200-yard freestyle with a personal best time less than a half hour later. Yuri Suguiyama, her first coach, watched Phelps break Australian Ian Thorpes world record in the 200 freestyle during the world championships in Melbourne. [84] Readers of The London Evening Standard voted Ledecky the International Sportswoman of the Decade. She is widely regarded as one of the greatest Olympians and the greatest female swimmer of all time.[5][6]. Oh, man, this is not exactly what we thought, he said. Katie Ledecky competes in the womens 1500-meter freestyle during the U.S. Olympic swim trials on June 16 in Omaha, Neb. Ledecky almost broke the world record in the 800-meter freestyle, finishing with a time of 8:11.35. She didnt hesitate to start faster than they expected and maintain the aggressive pace. The swim was the fifth-fastest in history and earned Ledecky the 28 fastest times in the distance. The history-making has become so common, so many would-be competitors left so far behind, that expectations, just like the pictures, are larger than life. (Charlie Neibergall / Associated Press) Michael Phelps, the 28-time. She set a time of 15:08.24, breaking the previous world record set by German swimmer Sarah Khler by almost 10 seconds. [74] She signed with Wasserman sports agent Dan Levy for representation.[75]. There are technical explanations: her aerobic system using oxygen with extraordinary efficiency, while her anaerobic system generates explosive bursts of energy. A similar picture covered the front of the building as the trials took place last month, another reminder that she is the face of the sport. Katie Ledecky has a height of 6'0" (1.83 m). Katie Ledecky Biography, Olympic Medals, Records and Age She wasnt great at skills or drills we would try and teach her. She broke the existing mark by five seconds. In the evening session, Ledecky faced a tough double with the 1500-meter freestyle final and the semi-finals of the 200-meter freestyle shortly after. Swimming the anchor leg again, Ledecky provided the fastest split of the field (1:53.74) to turn a 0.89-second deficit into a 1.84-second victory, stopping the clock at 7:43.03.[56]. She keeps logbooks chronicling most of her practices dating to 2011. Ledecky began the year by breaking her own world records in the 800- and 1500-meter freestyle at the 2014 Woodlands Swim Team Senior Invitational in June. Shes doing what everybody else does. At the 2020 Olympic Games, Ledecky also emerged as the most decorated U.S. female athlete and became the first American female swimmer to win an individual event in three straight Olympiads. OMAHA As she prepared for her first Olympics nine years ago, a 15-year-old Katie Ledecky carried hopes and dreams into the London Games. Her 3:57.36 on Sunday was the second-fastest she . Barbini noticed the mix of intensity and care thats as much a part of Ledecky as the blazing times. Follow. She subsequently announced her withdrawal from the 1500 and 200-meter freestyle due to illness.[81]. 3x U.S. Olympic Swimmer (2012, 2016, 2021) 7x Olympic Gold Medalist 19x World Champion Stanford grad #TeamTYR - Katie@teamwass.com. At the 2019 World Aquatics Championships in Gwangju, South Korea, Ledecky battled illness and withdrew from two events before winning her fourth-straight World Championship title in the 800-meter freestyle. The next day, Ledecky lowered her meet record, winning the 800-meter freestyle final by nearly 10 seconds (8:10.32). If any single item is responsible for her transformation, the grueling sessions away from television cameras and autograph-seeking fans might be it. In a video posted on social media last summer, Ledecky placed a glass of chocolate milk on her head, then swam the length of the pool. When Titmus first turned up to training with Boxall she was 16 seconds off Ledecky in the 400m, but slowly started to chip away and after a year she had halved the gap. 422 posts. The swimmer wowed the world in 2012 when she competed in her first Olympics at just 15 and won a gold medal in the 800-meter freestyle competition. [4], Ledecky began swimming at the age of six due to the influence of her older brother, Michael, and her mother, who swam for the University of New Mexico. [7] In total, she has won 42 medals (34 golds, 7 silvers, and 1 bronze) in major international competitions, spanning the Summer Olympics, World Championships, and Pan Pacific Championships. The next day, Ledecky anchored for Team USA in the women's 4x200 freestyle relay, winning a silver medal alongside teammates Allison Schmitt, Paige Madden, and Katie McLaughlin behind China. The same all-out approach Ledecky brought to the final 25 meters of the 200 freestyle at the Rio de Janeiro Olympics she edged Swedens Sarah Sjostrom by .35 seconds for gold despite feeling queasy happens regularly in practice with nothing at stake other than numbers on a clock. She won a fourth gold in her final individual event, the 800-meter freestyle. [82], For the seventh-straight year, Ledecky finished the year with the top times in the world in both the 800- and 1500-meter freestyle (8:10.70 and 15:35.98). [55], Ledecky claimed her third gold in the 4200-meter freestyle relay, with Allison Schmitt, Leah Smith, and Maya DiRado. Katie Ledecky is doing what Katie Ledecky does! the public address announcer shouted last month as she completed another convincing victory during the U.S. Olympic swimming trials in Omaha, Neb. She won 10 Olympic medals, 7 of which were gold. The stroke thats propelled Ledecky to record after record is connected to another legend. Katie Ledecky, byname of Kathleen Genevieve Ledecky, (born March 17, 1997, Washington, D.C., U.S.), American swimmer who was one of the sport's dominant freestylers in the early 21st century, breaking numerous records. Inside the 24-year-old Katie Ledecky's decision to leave Stanford and join elite training partners and a new coach in Anthony Nesty at the University of Florida, ahead of Paris 2024. After earning a berth on the U.S. Olympic team at age 15, she set an American record in the 800-meter freestyle to. Shes swimming faster than we are, said Urbanchek, coach to 44 Olympians and an assistant on six Olympic teams. Kathleen Genevieve Ledecky (born March 17, 1997) is an American competitive swimmer. Ledecky finished her high-school career as the holder of the Stone Ridge school record in every swimming event except the 100-meter breaststroke. Joined with Mallory Comerford, Kelsi Worrell, and Simone Manuel, Ledecky recorded a split of 53.83, helping the team win gold with a time of 3:31.72, a new national record for the United States. You may occasionally receive promotional content from the Los Angeles Times. On the first day of the meet, Ledecky anchored the 800-yard freestyle relay with a 1:40.28 split to break the NCAA, American, and U.S. Open record in the 800-yard freestyle relay with Lia Neal, Katie Drabot, and Ella Eastin. Dean Boxall on THAT celebration after Ariarne Titmus beat Katie Ledecky Notably, in the semifinals the day prior, Ledecky recorded the top time in the semifinals with a time of 1:54.69. David Marsh, an assistant on the team who served as the womens coach in 2016, recalled coaches gathering when Ledecky swam. On the fourth day of competition, Ledecky tied for silver in the 200-meter freestyle (with Emma McKeon), finishing behind Federica Pellegrini with a time of 1:55.18. At the Texas A&M Invitational in November 2017, Ledecky lowered her American and U.S. Open mark in the 1650-yard freestyle with a time of 15:03.31. Trust me. In the 1500-meter freestyle, Ledecky broke her own world record in a time of 15:25.48. Each month, she sends practice video to Russell Mark, a former rocket scientist who is USA Swimmings national team performance manager. This is something really, really special.. On the fifth day of competition, Ledecky, with Missy Franklin, Leah Smith, and Katie McLaughlin won gold in the 4200-meter freestyle relay. Sometimes she faded. She had a smile that seemed bigger than her diminutive frame, swim cap pulled over her ears and enthusiastic post-race analyses captured on home movies. Ledecky's winning time was over six seconds quicker than American teammate and silver medalist Cierra Runge. Ledecky's swim was the seventh-fastest performance in history. Katie Ledecky | Biography, Olympic Medals, Records, & Facts Not a drop of milk spilled. Ledecky has also received the following awards:[143], Last edited on 19 February 2023, at 16:58, Associated Press Female Athlete of the Year, United States Olympic Committee Female Athlete of the Year, College Sports Information Directors of America, Academic All-America Team Member of the Year, FINA Best Swimming Performance of the Year, List of Olympic medalists in swimming (women), List of top Olympic gold medalists in swimming, List of World Aquatics Championships medalists in swimming (women), List of individual gold medalists in swimming at the Olympics and World Aquatics Championships (women), World record progression 400 metres freestyle, World record progression 800 metres freestyle, World record progression 1500 metres freestyle, Organizing Committee of the Olympic and Paralympic Games Rio 2016, "Katie Ledecky Turns Pro After Dominating College Swimming", "How Katie Ledecky Became the Greatest Distance Swimmer of All Time", "The debate about Washington's greatest athlete is over: it's Katie Ledecky", "Ledecky Johns Elite Company With Third Straight Title in 800 Freestlye", Katie Ledecky wins Female Athlete of the Olympic Games, "New York City Passenger and Crew Lists, 1909, 1925-1957", "Back to her roots: How Katie Ledecky became so dominant in the pool", "Gold medalist swimmer inspired by her Jewish history", "Pozor, vlny. Dwyer topped out at 40 inches. There were many times where she was walking up for practice and I think, Thats the best female athlete in the world? Id just kind of chuckle to myself because theres nothing that said that.. [58] Ledecky was also the 2nd most decorated Olympian at the 2016 games behind Michael Phelps (5 golds, 1 silver).[59]. Shes kind of a freak athlete, said Lee Sommers, an athletic trainer in Bethesda, Md., who helped prepare Ledecky for Rio. On the third day, Ledecky defeated Titmus wire-to-wire in the 400-meter freestyle.[80]. About an hour later, she returned to the pool for the 1,500 freestyle final. 1 ranking", "SwimSwam Pulse: 52.4% Pick Ledecky As Swimmer of the 2010s", "Lewis Hamilton voted Best British Sports Star of the Decade as Djokovic, Ledecky and Kuneida also triumph", "Serena Williams aces AP athlete of the decade honors", "Katie Ledecky, after being slowed by illness, showcases her speed", "2020 PSS - Des Moines: Ledecky Scratches 800 Free on Day 4", "With eyes on Tokyo, Katie Ledecky returns to find out what a difference a year makes", "Katie Ledecky wins all four of her events, Simone Manuel takes 50-meter crown at TYR Pro Swim Series", "Meet Results: Longhorn Aquatics Elite Invite 5/20/2021 - 5/23/2021", "Katie Ledecky vs. herself: How a backyard pool and unrelenting drive has the U.S. swimmer on the brink of Olympic history", "2020 U.S. Olympic Team Trials - Wave II: Women's 400m Freestyle Heats Results Summary", "2021 U.S. Olympic Trials Wave II: Day 2 Prelims Live Recap", "Katie Ledecky's first opportunity to make Tokyo Olympic team has arrived in 400m freestyle", "2020 U.S. Olympic Team Trials - Wave II: Women's 400m Freestyle Final Results Summary", "2021 U.S. Olympic Trials Wave II: Day 2 Finals Live Recap", "Tickets Punched: Katie Ledecky and Torri Huske are Tokyo Bound", "U.S. Olympic Trials: Katie Ledecky Swims 4:01.27 to Qualify for Third Olympics; Paige Madden Pulls Away for Second", "Katie Ledecky relieved to check the box after qualifying for third Olympics", "Katie Ledecky vs Ariarne Titmus Rivalry Emerges in 400m Freestyle Before Tokyo", "Katie Ledecky makes US Olympic team with win in women's 400-meter freestyle", "2020 U.S. Olympic Team Trials - Wave II: Women's 200m Freestyle Heats Results Summary", "2020 U.S. Olympic Team Trials - Wave II: Women's 1500m Freestyle Heats Results Summary", "2021 U.S. Olympic trials Wave II: Day 3 Prelims Live Recap", "2020 U.S. Olympic Team Trials - Wave II: Women's 200m Freestyle Semifinals Results Summary", "2020 U.S. Olympic Team Trials - Wave II: Women's 200m Freestyle Final Results Summary", "2020 U.S. Olympic Team Trials - Wave II: Women's 1500m Freestyle Final Results Summary", "Katie Ledecky, after chats with legends, wins two races in one night at Olympic Swimming Trials", "2021 U.S. Olympic Trials Wave II: Day 4 Finals Live Recap", "For Katie Ledecky, the long and short of it is first place in both the 1,500 and 200 freestyle", "Katie Ledecky shows dominance, poise at U.S. Olympics swim trials", "Katie Ledecky wins 1500m free 70 minutes after 200m at US Olympic Trials", "2020 U.S. Olympic Team Trials - Wave II: Women's 800m Freestyle Heats Results Summary", "2021 U.S. Olympic Trials Wave II: Day 6 Prelims Live Recap", "2020 U.S. Olympic Team Trials - Wave II: Women's 800m Freestyle Final Results Summary", "2021 U.S. Olympic Trials Wave II: Day 7 Finals Live Recap", "Which athletes have won the most Olympic medals in Tokyo 2020?
