TOKYO Katie Ledecky has won her first gold of the Tokyo Olympics, in the 1,500 meter freestyle race. Then it did. Ledecky made her first splash in international swimming after her freshman year at Stone Ridge School of the Sacred Heart in . I think I do a pretty good job of sticking to those and not seeing what kinds of medal counts or times that people are throwing out about what I could accomplish if everything goes perfectly.. David Marsh, an assistant on the team who served as the womens coach in 2016, recalled coaches gathering when Ledecky swam. Her Czech-born paternal grandfather Jaromr Ledecky arrived in New York City on September 8, 1947, as a student,[10] later becoming an economist, and married an Ashkenazi Jewish woman named Berta Ruth Greenwald (Ledecky's paternal grandmother) in Brooklyn on December 30, 1956, and through her Ledecky has relatives who were killed in the Holocaust in Europe. Thank you for your support. Allyson Felix is determined to make the U.S. Olympic track and field team for the upcoming Tokyo Games as she looks to add to her legacy in the sport. Swimming the anchor leg, Ledecky recorded a split of 1:55.64 and the Americans finished with an aggregate time of 7:45.37. Her world records came in the 800- and 1500-meter freestyles. Having already set 11 world records, she is a favorite to win at the Rio Olympics in the women's 200-, 400- and. What stood out to me was nothing stood out physically, he said. Four years later, she left Rio de Janeiro as the most decorated female athlete of the 2016 Olympic Games, with four gold medals, one silver medal, and two world records. The most impressive thing for me is blocking out the noise and not feeling the pressure., Urbanchek put it bluntly: Nothing distracts her., Theres no special sauce. However, elite swimmers focus on how to generate propulsion more efficiently.. Then theres the sheer efficiency of how her body works. Ledecky qualified in the heats with a time of 3:58.71, an Olympic record. Coaches, teammates and competitors point to her powerful stroke, legendary training sessions, unusual blend of speed and endurance, and tenacity that is otherworldly. But within an hour of each other? On the meet's first day, she recorded the team's fastest split to lower the 800-yard freestyle relay record to 6:45.91 with Manuel, Neal, and Eastin. 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. Ledecky was the defending Olympic champion and world-record holder. In between London and Rio, Ledecky quietly became the world's most dominant swimmer no longer just a distance specialist. But she was always bouncing up and down, really bouncy in the water and I think you can swim better than that.. On the meet's third day, Ledecky's 20th birthday, Ledecky recorded a personal-best time of 1:40.36 in the 200-yard freestyle to edge Manuel and tie Louisville sophomore Mallory Comerford for the title. [90], On Thursday May 20, 2021, at the Longhorn Aquatics Elite Invite Ledecky won the long course 100 meter freestyle final by one one-hundredth of a second in a time of 53.82 with second place going to Simone Manuel. We dont talk about it. "Katie Ledecky is the student that takes 20 credits a semester at Harvard and gets a 4.0 every semester -- and nobody likes that person," said Elizabeth Beisel, a 2012 Olympic silver and bronze . The quiet 15-year-old usually kept up with the men, who noticed fearlessness and poise that belied her youth. Her win was made even more impressive by the fact that, per her Team USA . (Photo: JIM SHORIN/isiphotos.com, Graphic: KATRINA LIOU/The Stanford Daily) By Inyoung Choi. One key is obsessive attention to detail. She has won seven Olympic gold medals and 19 world championship gold medals, the most in history for a female swimmer. [101][102][103], In the morning of day three, Ledecky swam a 1:57.58 in the 200 meter freestyle prelims, ranking second fastest of all heats. In the final, she joined Simone Manuel, Abbey Weitzeil, and Dana Vollmer and recorded a split of 52.79, helping the team earn a silver medal (behind Australia) with a time of 3:31.89, a new national record for the United States. [131], Following the Olympic Games on September 22nd, Ledecky announced her intention to train with coach Anthony Nesty at the University of Florida. Take the 400 freestyle final at the trials. Twice each week, she trained against long-distance swimmers Liam Egan and True Sweetser. But she shows gratitude and appreciation and keeps people coming back to get their heads kicked in.. Years later, Gemmell read two items on Ledeckys goal card: break the world record in the 800 freestyle by the following summer and swim 8:10 in the event in Rio. At the Ohio State Invitational in November 2016, Ledecky lowered her American and U.S. Open marks in the women's 500-yard freestyle and 1650-yard freestyle.[60]. Katie Ledecky. 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. When Ledecky isn't training, she doesn't stray much from her . National Team Director Frank Busch described Ledecky's 1500 performance as "the most impressive race I have ever seen, and I've been in the sport for 50 years. She's blazing a completely different trail than anyone who has come before. About 18 months before the London Olympics, Suguiyama suggested that Ledecky adopt the gallop. Theres a lot more pressure when youre 24 and going to the Olympics for your third Games as a heavy favorite versus being 15 and going to the Olympics with barely anyone knowing your name. She broke the existing mark by five seconds. 578k Followers, 883 Following, 422 Posts - See Instagram photos and videos from Katie Ledecky (@katieledecky) katieledecky. [24] In Omaha, Ledecky also placed third in the 400-meter freestyle (4:05.00) and ninth in the 200-meter freestyle (1:58.66). [105][106] Later the same day in the evening semifinals for the 200 meter freestyle, Ledecky finished first with a time of 1:55.83. What transformed that girl who couldnt make it across the pool? She wasnt a great kicker. Ledecky's winning time was over six seconds quicker than American teammate and silver medalist Cierra Runge. Ledecky passed Quadarella and pulled away in the final 50 meters to win by 1.41 seconds. Ledecky returned to competition three days later to swim the final of the women's 4x200-meter freestyle relay. Its a remarkable combination, particularly for someone to be that dominant for so long, which takes so much commitment, while at the same time being so nice and polite and kind., Matt Barbini, USA Swimmings national team performance director. In her first event in Barcelona, the 400-meter freestyle, Ledecky became a world champion for the first time by winning in 3:59.82, setting a new American record and becoming the second-fastest performer of all time in the event.[31]. [104] Two events later, she swam a 15:43.10 in the 1500 meter freestyle prelims, ranking as the fastest swimmer of prelims heat, advancing to the final, and setting a new Championship Record over four seconds faster than the previous record she set in 2013. Thats whats allowing her to get such a good grab of the water and have such good force generation per stroke.. Her gold was the first international medal of her career, earning her the 2012 Best Female Performance of the Year and Breakout Performer of the Year at the Golden Goggle Awards. Katie Ledecky shifts her training base to University of Florida ahead of Paris 2024. She doesnt have a central governor like most athletes do, that mind-to-muscle idea that I need to shut down right now. Theres nothing you can throw at her that she cant convince herself that she can do., Lee Sommers, an athletic trainer in Bethesda, Md., who helped prepare Ledecky for Rio. [38], At the 2014 Pan Pacific Swimming Championships in Gold Coast, Australia, Ledecky won five gold medals and broke two world records. In the 400-meter freestyle, Ledecky set her third world record of the year by breaking Federica Pellegrini's 2009 world record of 3:59.15 with a time of 3:58.86. Ledecky won by 4.13 seconds and just missed the world record by 0.53 seconds. Ledecky began 2016 at the Arena Pro Swim Series at Austin. Is she tall for the average person? The time that would be a career-making moment for almost any other swimmer surprised her. The five-time Olympic gold medalist owns world records in the 400-, 800-, and 1,500-meter freestyles. Instead, Ledecky has a gift that defies measurement. [91], As part of the NBC evening telecast for day one of the 2020 USA Swimming Olympic Trials (postponed to June 2021 due to the COVID-19 pandemic), Ledecky was featured in an interview discussing Stanford University's commencement, finishing her college degree, and training for the Olympic Trials. Shes swimming in full dude territory, he said. During the 201617 NCAA season, Ledecky set 12 NCAA records and nine American records while swimming as a freshman for Stanford University. If any single item is responsible for her transformation, the grueling sessions away from television cameras and autograph-seeking fans might be it. At the NCAA Championships in Indianapolis, Ledecky helped lead Stanford to its first team title since 1998. 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]. The usual gap for a world record is as thin as an Olympic medal. Three days later, Ledecky then broke the world record in the 800-meter freestyle with a time of 8:11.00,[37] bettering her previous mark of 8:13.86. 422 posts. [135] Ledecky earned FINA's female swimmer of the meet trophy for a third time. She won the 200-, 400-, 800- and 1500-meter freestyle races. Shes able to really lean into each arm, Sweetser said. She feels water better than anyone else has ever felt water, Barbini said. She was also named the best female swimmer for 2013 by FINA Aquatics World magazine. She has the 24 fastest swims of all time. Thats why Bruce Gemmell quips that Ledecky would be content to race in a cardboard box. Her strength-to-body mass ratio is probably in the top 98%.. On the final day of competition, she reset her world record in the 800-meter freestyle, clocking a time of 8:06.68. [93], On the second day, June 14, 2021, Ledecky competed in the prelims of the 400 meter freestyle in the morning, swimming a 4:03.07, ranking 1st out of all prelims heats, and advancing to the final in the evening. Were offering L.A. Times subscribers first access to our best journalism. Katie wants to win by the most massive margin possible, but I dont think she wants to break anyones soul like Michael Jordan did. I really havent had too many of those over the past couple months, so thats a good thing.. On the seventh day of competition, Ledecky completed her World Championships run by winning gold in the 800-meter freestyle in a world record time of 8:07.39, breaking her own record by 3.61 seconds.[44]. Katie Ledecky hugs Erica Sullivan after winning the womens 1500 freestyle during the second wave of the U.S. Olympic Swim Trials on June 16 in Omaha, Neb. Katie Ledecky has no obvious physiological advantages as a swimmer. The questions pile up too. Not a drop of milk spilled. 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. Athlete. She has no long torso, no wide. 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. Ledecky breaking an arm in fourth grade, but jumping back into the pool with a cast. Andrew Gemmell, the coachs son who competed at the London Olympics in the 1,500 freestyle, trained with Ledecky in the two years leading up to Rio. Gemmell warned other men in the training camp to be ready for Ledecky to beat them. Mary Gen Ledecky, who swam in college, encouraged her daughter to write down goals. Even if they are fit and strong like a football player, they cannot swim fast if they do not have the skill to catch the water, Takagi wrote in an email. She has an uncanny ability to remain herself, not flinch in the face of scrutiny and focus on the task at hand. [32] The hard-fought race saw Ledecky overcome Dane Lotte Friis in the final few hundred meters after losing the lead at the 300-meter mark and included a final 50 split of 29.47. During her career, she has broken sixteen world records. How fast would Torri Huske, the 18-year-old phenom headed to Stanford this fall, swim in the 100 butterfly final? She won 10 Olympic medals, 7 of which were gold. She doesnt have Phelps attention-grabbing build that included an 80-inch wingspan and size-14 feet that seemed to double as flippers. She won three individual gold medals at the 2013 World Championships,. The American . Katie Ledecky's height is 6 feet tall and her body weight is 73 kilograms. Many of the top women in the world also possess great height, as world record-holders Sarah Sjostrom and Katie Ledeckey are both six feet tall (1.83m), while 100 free gold medalists Simone Manuel. She also holds the fastest-ever times in the women's 500-, 1000-, and 1650-yard freestyle events. You may occasionally receive promotional content from the Los Angeles Times. May 4, 2020, 8:23 p.m. Five days after she turned 23, Katie Ledecky '20 . Katie Ledecky competes in the womens 1500-meter freestyle during the U.S. Olympic swim trials on June 16 in Omaha, Neb. She wasnt great at skills or drills we would try and teach her. Because of her analytical approach to training, she knows almost exactly how the race is going to go, Sweetser said. Nathan Fenno is a sports enterprise reporter for the Los Angeles Times focused on investigations, features and in-depth stories. Her face was red. [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. [140], On October 28, during the Toronto round of the FINA Swimming World Cup, Ledecky swam the 1500m short course event for the first time. [64] On the meet's final day, Ledecky set an NCAA record in the 1000-yard freestyle (9:06.90) en route to a championship record in the 1650-yard freestyle (15:07.70), defeating runner-up Smith by 21.19 seconds and lapping all other competitors. At the 2013 US National Championships, Ledecky qualified to swim in four individual events and the 4200-meter freestyle relay at the 2013 World Aquatics Championships in Barcelona, Spain, though she later dropped the 200-meter freestyle from her program. [52], Ledecky's first event in the 2016 Summer Olympics was the 4100-meter freestyle relay, swimming the anchor leg for the United States in both the prelims and final. She is widely regarded as one of the greatest Olympians and the greatest female swimmer of all time.[5][6]. Its a mindset that different to go out as fast as you can without being blatantly reckless.. She became the first swimmer to win a distance event three times in a row, as well as the youngest and oldest person to win the 800 free (at age 15 in 2012 and age 24 in 2021). The stroke thats propelled Ledecky to record after record is connected to another legend. Sports, however, bring a desire for answers, for numbers, for specifics, especially for someone whose accomplishments almost have become disorienting. What I found over time what she was great at, though, was her desire to get better. . 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. [137], Ledecky won the 1500-meter freestyle two days later in a time of 15:30.15, over 14 seconds faster than runner-up and teammate Katie Grimes. Shes not doing some special strength program that nobody else knows about. Katie Grimes, who at 15 finished second in the 1,500-meter freestyle during the swim trials, said, "Maybe I can be just like Katie [Ledecky] one day," after her trials performance. The section also will be available for purchase at latimes.com/store. The next day, Ledecky lowered her own mark again in the 500-yard freestyle with a time of 4:25.15. Barbini noticed the mix of intensity and care thats as much a part of Ledecky as the blazing times. The traits, at least individually, arent uncommon in elite swimmers. [141], The following week at the World Cup's Indianapolis stop, Ledecky broke the world record in the 800m short course freestyle. [94][95] The 400 meter freestyle was the first race on Ledecky's schedule where she had the opportunity to make the 2020 USA Olympic Team. "She's relatively short (at 5-foot-11) and she doesn't have an excessive wingspan." Nevertheless, Ledecky's arms are long enough to wrap around what could. Yuri Suguiyama, her first coach, watched Phelps break Australian Ian Thorpes world record in the 200 freestyle during the world championships in Melbourne. [126] She swam a 1:55.34 in the semifinals of the 200 meter freestyle and advanced to the final ranking third overall. Ledecky made her debut as a professional swimmer on May 16, 2018, at the TYR Pro Swim Series in Indianapolis, Indiana, where she beat her old world record in the 1500-meter freestyle, setting a new world record of 15:20.48. (Charlie Neibergall / Associated Press) Michael Phelps, the 28-time. Shes doing what everybody else does. She won a fourth gold in her final individual event, the 800-meter freestyle. Shes just doing it better than everybody else., Bruce Gemmell, Katie Ledeckys coach at the Nations Capital Swim Club, Some of this immunity to pressure comes from her knack to set goals, internalize them, then turn them into reality. She set a time of 15:08.24, breaking the previous world record set by German swimmer Sarah Khler by almost 10 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. On July 1, Ledecky broke Janet Evans's 28-year-old national championship record in the morning preliminary heats of the 800-meter freestyle (8:10.91) before placing seventh that evening in the 100-meter freestyle (53.99). 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?