During a short visit back home to the Washington, D.C. area over the winter holiday, swimming superstar Katie Ledecky took time out of her holiday schedule to visit Children’s National Hospital. This has become a regular Christmas-time ritual for the two-time Olympic swimmer – she has visited the hospital around this time for at least 3 years.
Two years ago, Ledecky was on hand to help launch “Seacrest Studios,” named after television personality Ryan Seacrest. the in-hospital studio produces an in-house television show with music and chat that patients can watch from their rooms.
Thank you for visiting with us this morning @katieledecky! We love having you. Fun fact: Katie helped us open our #SeacrestStudios 2 yrs ago! ??✨ #holidaysatchildrens pic.twitter.com/eEtrEdZzbc
— Children's National (@childrenshealth) December 22, 2017
“During this visit in particular, she visited with some of our patients and staff on the 7th floor, and spent time in the Seacrest Studios going live on air to play music and chat with patients from their rooms,” a spokesperson for the hospital said. “She took photos with kids in the studios as well. Everyone had a blast!”
While we weren’t able to get in touch with Ledecky to discuss the visit, both Stanford and USA Swimming confirmed that this is not a part of any official programs run by either group, and that it’s something that she does on her own.
Ledecky is a 5-time Olympic gold medalist and a 14-time long course World Champion in swimming. She’s currently a sophomore at Stanford, where last season she set 12 NCAA records, 9 American records, and won 3 individual NCAA event titles (the maximum possible).
Previous visits:
Katie Ledecky took part in the opening of a new #SeacrestStudios at @childrenshealth in Washington DC! pic.twitter.com/hDDvDtQOwc
— USA Swimming (@USASwimming) November 6, 2015
Katie Ledecky visited @childrenshealth today, and she brought her gold medals. https://t.co/eme1I82WnM pic.twitter.com/62WWf1MCZ5
— Washingtonian (@washingtonian) August 23, 2016
Such class. I hope she continues to win everything!