INDIANAPOLIS (AP) — Katie Ledecky is heading to her fourth Olympics, an accomplishment that seemed unimaginable when she was a 15-year-old kid in London.
These days, it wouldn’t seem like a Summer Games without her.
As steady as ever, Ledecky cruised to victory in the 400-meter freestyle at the U.S. swimming trials on Saturday night.
She makes qualifying for the Olympics look so much easier than it is. Ledecky became just the ninth U.S. swimmer to qualify at least four times for the sport’s grandest stage.
“I pride myself on that consistency,” she said. “Sometimes it can be tough to feel you’re not having a breakthrough. But being really consistent is something I’m really happy with. I’ve learned to really enjoy training and take advantage of the moment.”
Cheered on by a crowd of 20,689 at the home of the NFL’s Indianapolis Colts, Ledecky touched the wall in the temporary pool in 3 minutes, 58.35 seconds.
She improved on her time of 3:59.99 in the morning preliminaries and set herself up to make a run at another gold against a loaded field at the Paris Games.
The Australian “Terminator,” Ariarne Titmus, is the defending Olympic champion and world-record holder in the 400 free. Canadian phenom Summer McIntosh is also expected to contend for the top spot on the podium.
In Tokyo, Ledecky settled for the silver behind Titmus — the first individual loss of the American’s Olympic career.
She’ll have her work cut out for her in Paris, as well.
Read more (via AP News)