Swimming phenom Katie Ledecky received her sixteenth gold medal on the world championships on Saturday, breaking the file set by celebrity Michael Phelps.
Ledecky, 26, completed the feat throughout a dominant efficiency on the 2023 World Aquatic Championships in Fukuoka, Japan. She earned her sixteenth title after successful the 800-meter freestyle with a time of 8:08.87, beating the second-place finisher, China’s Li Bingjie, by greater than 4 full seconds.
By successful the occasion, Ledecky shattered the file set by Phelps, which she had tied simply days earlier by successful the 1,500-meter freestyle. She wasn’t executed setting new milestones, although, as her 800-meter win additionally made her the primary swimmer in historical past to win six world titles in the identical occasion, in accordance with USA Swimming.
After her record-setting milestone, Ledecky instructed reporters she was “pleased with that swim. I wished it to be somewhat higher, however I am going to take it. I am actually happy.” She added, “I actually did not even know I used to be going to realize that till folks began telling me. It is cool.” Ledecky later instructed USA Immediately that she tends “to deal with one race, one apply, and one season at a time and by no means actually ‘intention’ for medal-count information. It’s simply the product of onerous work.”
Whereas she stays behind Phelps by way of Olympic gold medals, she’ll have an opportunity so as to add to that whole subsequent 12 months in the course of the 2024 Summer time Olympics in Paris. A lock for the U.S. staff, Ledecky has received seven gold medals and three silver medals in her three prior Olympics. She wants three extra gold medals to succeed in second place amongst all Olympic athletes behind Phelps, in accordance with Yahoo! Sports activities, and three extra whole medals would put her “in first place amongst all feminine Olympic swimmers and second amongst all Olympic swimmers.”