Katie Ledecky smashed the world record for the 1500m freestyle to take her second gold medal, after the 800m, at the world championships on Tuesday in Barcelona. Looking stronger at the end of the gruelling race than she did at the beginning, the 16-year-old obliterated the previous record by more than six seconds.
Katie Ledecky said “Female athletes are finding beauty in competing in the moment, but are also finding the beauty in enjoying those moments in a non-stressful manner, having fun with teammates in sharing common experiences and meeting goals, and then using their success to help others. Helping others is beautiful “.
Kathleen Genevieve Ledecky was born on17th of March 1997. She is an American distance swimmer, Olympic gold medallist, and world record holder. In her Olympic debut at the 2012 Summer Olympics as a 15-year old, Ledecky won the gold in the 800-meter freestyle with the second-fastest performance of all-time. She is the current world record holder in the 1500-meter freestyle (long course) and American record holder in the 400- and 800-meter freestyle (long course).
Ledecky was born in Washington, D.C., the daughter of David and Mary Gen Ledecky. David Ledecky’s father came to the United States from the Czechoslovakia in 1947. Her mother swam for the University of New Mexico. Ledecky resides in Bethesda, Maryland, where she attends Stone Ridge School of the Sacred Heart. Ledecky began swimming at the age of six due to influence of her older brother, Michael. Through the summer of 2012, she trained with the Nation’s Capital Swim Club (formerly the Curl Burke Swim Club) under coach Yuri Suguiyama. She continues to train with the Nation’s Capital Swim Club under coach Bruce Gemmell. During the summers, she swims for Palisades Swim Team in Bethesda.
At the 2012 United States Olympic Trials in Omaha, Nebraska, her first major competition, Ledecky made the Olympic team by placing first in the 800-meter freestyle with a time of 8:19.78, which was over two seconds ahead of second-place finisher Kate Ziegler. In Omaha, Ledecky also placed third in the 400-meter freestyle (4:05.00) and ninth in the 200-meter freestyle (1:58.66). Her third-place finish in the 400-meter freestyle was the fastest time ever swum by a 15- to 16-year-old American, breaking the national age-group record previously held by Janet Evans. At 15 years, 4 months, and 10 days; she was the youngest American participant at the 2012 Olympic Games.
At the 2012 Summer Olympics in London, Ledecky qualified to swim in the final of the 800-meter freestyle by placing third overall in the heats with a time of 8:23.84. In the final, Ledecky shocked the field by winning the gold medal by over four seconds with a time of 8:14.63, the second-fastest effort of all time just behind Rebecca Adlington’s world record of 8:14.10 set in 2008. In addition, she broke Janet Evans’ American record of 8:16.22 that stood since 1989. In the final, Ledecky took it out hard and by the 200-meter mark, she had already established an almost body length lead. At the 400-meter mark, Ledecky split 4:04.34, a personal best for her in that distance, and would have placed fifth in the individual 400-meter freestyle. At the 750-meter mark, Ledecky was 3.42 seconds ahead of Mireia Belmonte García, and 0.31 seconds under world record pace. Ledecky ended up winning by a margin of 4.13 seconds and just missing the world record by 0.53 seconds. Her gold was the first international medal of her career, warranting her the 2012 Best Female Performance of the Year and Breakout Performer of the Year at the Golden Goggle Awards.
At the 2013 US National Championships, Ledecky qualified to swim in four individual events and the 4×200-meter freestyle relay at the 2013 World Aquatics Championships in Barcelona, though she later dropped the 200-meter freestyle from her program. At the National Championships, she finished first in the 400-, 800- and 1500-meter freestyle, and second in the 200-meter freestyle.
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