Paris Olympics: Reflective Katie Ledecky Using Two-Day Break to Reset For Big Olympic Finish
The principles through which Katie Ledecky has built her greatest-of-all-time swimming résumé are consistency and attention to detail. Simple and straightforward, the approach leans into the grind of training and highly technical, specific goals in the pool. Ledecky gave insight into those goals at the conclusion of the U.S. Olympic Trials when she revealed that the historical achievements she could reach in Paris, including becoming the most decorated female swimmer and most decorated American female Olympian in any sport, were far from the center of her attention.
Accordingly, the facade that Ledecky traditionally presents is a stoic, analytical one, with the 11-time Olympic medalist only portraying emotions at unusually special junctions in her career, such as following the last race at both the 2016 and 2020 Olympics. In both instances, Ledecky was overcome with the finality of concluding an Olympic quad.
The moments immediately following Ledecky’s first final of her fourth Games, in which she took bronze in the 400 freestyle, were hardly the time to expect that sort of response. The finish was not unexpected, although Ledecky was admittedly disappointed to finish two-and-a-half seconds shy of her season-best time from last month’s U.S. Olympic Trials.
“There are always things I want to do better, even in my great races. There’s a lot of things I would like to do better. I looked at my splits, there was nothing horrible. I didn’t have it the last 200, 250 like I wanted to,” Ledecky said. “I just couldn’t kick into that next gear I wanted to finish it out. It was such a good field, there was a chance I could not have gotten a medal. I’m grateful for that.”
Perhaps that disappointment, for whatever reason, put the 27-year-old in a reflective mood.
She considered her rivalries with both Australia’s Ariarne Titmus and Canadian teenager Summer McIntosh, the two women who saw the lofty standard Ledecky set in the 400 free during her own teenage years and worked to catch up. Ledecky thought back to the first time she raced Titmus — at the Budapest World Championships in 2017, as she correctly remembered — and their development of a cordial and friendly relationship in the years since. Ledecky laughed about one potentially embarrassing moment the two shared just before the Olympic final.
“She went to lane four, and I had to tell her, ‘You’re in lane five,’” Ledecky recalled. “I told her, ‘All good, all good,’ because she was freaking out, and I didn’t want her to feel bad or anything. I joked with her before the medals, ‘You’re getting a little comfortable there, lane four.’ I didn’t want either of us to get disqualified for swimming in the wrong lane. We got it taken care of.”
The respect is clearly mutual, with Titmus remarking, “I definitely don’t see my rivalry with her as anything but racing. I really respect her as a person. I look up to her and what she’s done and her longevity in the sport. It’s nice to catch up, to see her and have a chat, and it’s nice racing the best in the world.”
Katie Ledecky, Ariarne Titmus and Summer Mcintosh with their medals from the women’s 400 freestyle final — Photo Courtesy: Giorgio Scala / Deepbluemedia / Insidefoto
Ledecky is almost a decade older than McIntosh, and she marveled at the teenager’s expansive racing schedule, a program not unlike the one Ledecky took on in her own teenage days. “Ariarne and I, we were waiting for the medals, and I think we both kind of forgot that Summer was getting ready for the relay. And then somebody told us she was going to skip some of the photos because of that. We were like, ‘Oh my gosh.’” Ledecky said. “She’s such an impressive athlete. She’s somebody that can swim multiple distances, multiple strokes, such a racer, so poised at this level. She’s going to have a phenomenal week and phenomenal career.”
She smiled throughout her reflections on these moments with competitors, memories she will no doubt treasure even if the particulars of the 400-meter final will not be among her competitive career highlights. But as Ledecky’s thoughts turned to those in her everyday life, the emotions broke through.
Following her third Olympics in Tokyo, Ledecky opted to depart her college home of Stanford, not for a return home to the Washington, D.C., area, but to Gainesville, Fla., where she hoped head coach Anthony Nesty and his staff could push her career further as she trained alongside some of the world’s best distance swimmers, including Olympic gold medalist Bobby Finke. She found the training boost she sought but so much more.
“I’ve gotten so much from training with them,” Ledecky said, choking up. “I don’t know why I’m getting emotional. Yeah, it’s just a really special group.” She paused again to collect herself. “It’s why I love this sport so much, because I get to spend every day with people like Bobby and Kieran (Smith) and Nesty and my coaches and everyone that believes in me and pushes me. I think just the confidence that I was able to have today is a testament to them. Just knowing that I race these really fast boys every day gives me the confidence to go up against really great racers.
“Yeah, I love this sport so much. I get emotional about it. I love those people, and that’s what carries me through, keeps me going. Don’t be fooled by my tears; I just get emotional at these kinds of a meets.”
Of course, plenty of work remains as Ledecky still has the 800 and 1500 freestyle to go, as well as a key leg on a U.S. women’s 800 free relay squad favored for a medal. Following the 400 free, Ledecky was pleased to receive two days off from racing for a reset, unwind a little but while keeping attention on the moments ahead.
“I need to keep my focus, not sit back and relax and kind of fall out of meet mode,” Ledecky said. “I need to stay in the zone, in the meet mode I want to be in over the next week. That’s kind of what I mean, making sure that I’m staying focused on my races and just staying positive, supporting my teammates.”
Ledecky remains the heavy favorite in the 1500, even if she again struggles to reach her best marks, but the 800 could be a close race with the in-form Titmus. Despite her slower-than-expected time in the 400 free, Ledecky was not concerned about the races to come over the remaining days of the Olympic program. “I don’t think there’s a lot that I can or anyone can read from this race going into the 800 or 1500,” she said.
The 400 free bronze was Ledecky’s 11th Olympic medal, leaving her one behind the three-way tie between former U.S. swimmers Jenny Thompson, Dara Torres and Natalie Coughlin for most career medals among American female Olympians in any sport. Australia’s Emma McKeon won her 12th Olympic medal Saturday to tie the three Americans for most career Olympic medals among female swimmers from any nation. Based on what is to come, Ledecky is likely to finish the week in first place on that list, either on her own or in a tie with McKeon.
Tuesday morning, the greatest swimmer of all-time will return to La Défense Arena for five more days of racing and more accomplishments to tick off. Will she be perfect? Probably not, but the curtain will not close on the Paris Games without another vintage Ledecky moment or two.