Paris Olympics, Day 4 Prelims: Katie Ledecky Coasts to Top Seed; Katie Grimes Out
The first three days of the Paris Olympics have brought both of the United States’ Katies a medal. It looks probable that one will add gold Wednesday night.
Katie Ledecky is looking to repeat as the champion of the 1,500 freestyle after leading the field through prelims, but the other half of Katie Squared, Katie Grimes, is out after finishing 10th.
Ledecky went 15:47.53 to lead the way. Second was Simona Quadarella. Anastasiia Kirpichnikova and Isabel Gose were the only other swimmers to break 16 minutes.
“I had a good two days off and was excited to get back in to racing today,” Ledecky said.
Grimes couldn’t recover from winning silver in the 400 individual medley the night before, falling to 10th in 16:12.11. She had been 15:56.27 at U.S. Trials.
- World record: Katie Ledecky, USA, 15:20.48 (2018)
- Olympic record: Katie Ledecky, USA, 15:35.35 (2021)
- Tokyo Olympic champion: Katie Ledecky, USA, 15:37.34
“I was just trying to work on getting my recovery in after last night,” said Grimes, who said she was pleased with her 400 IM medal but called the time “really bad.” “It’s just difficult with the session being so late, but it’s not what I wanted this morning.”
Both Americans were in the final heat. Quadarella won the second heat of three in 15:51.19. Quadarella was fifth at the last Olympics and won silver in Fukuoka.
Second in that heat was France’s Kirpichnikova in 15:52.46 to comfortably get to the final. She made the final of the Olympics in 2021, representing the Russian Olympic Committee, and was fourth in Worlds last year after her nationality switch. Gose, fifth at Worlds last year, was third in 15:53.27 to easily get in.
Moesha Johnson of Australia is fifth. Li Bigjie, who missed the final of the 400 free and won bronze in this event in Budapest in 2022, was sixth. Beatriz Dizotti made the final, as did a second German in Leonie Martens.
The field was down to 16 competitors for eight spots with the withdrawal of Lani Pallister due to a positive test for COVID-19. Pallister had won silver at Worlds in 2022 and was fifth in Fukuoka a year ago.
Heat 1 was won by Singapore’s Gan Ching Hwee in 16:10.13, clipping nearly a half second off her national record and finishing ninth. It featured Kristel Kobrich of Chile, in her sixth Olympic games, and Malta’s Sasha Gatt, born 11 months after Kobrich made her Olympic debut at the 2004 Games.
