Katie Ledecky made an appearance on The Tonight Show, starring Jimmy Fallon yesterday, in which she talked about her experience at the Tokyo 2020 Olympics. Ledecky walked out on stage wearing her 2 Gold and 2 Silver medals from Tokyo, and shortly thereafter, she gave Fallon the Gold medal from the women’s 800 free to wear. Ledecky explains the Olympic medal design to Fallon, showing him that the front side of the medals are always the same at each Olympic Games, but the backside of the medals bear a unique design from the host of those Games.
Jimmy Fallon then hands the medal back to Ledecky, and asks her how it was to compete with no spectators in Tokyo. She replies “It was a little different,” adding that she’s “lucky” to have had her family with her at the 2012 and 2016 Olympics. Ledecky then says that the Team USA members who were in the stands cheering each session “brought some really good energy,” and concluded by saying “[no spectators] wasn’t as weird as I was expecting.”
The next question Fallon asks Ledecky is surrounding her status in the sport of swimming. “Everyone’s calling you the GOAT…is it odd to be called that?” Ledecky responds with “A little, I mean there’s so many great swimmers throughout the years.” She then adds that “Of course, Michael Phelps is the GOAT, but I’m just honored to carry on the legacy of great female swimmers in the US.”
The interview ends with Fallon asking Ledecky for her thoughts on whether it’s safe to eat before swimming. She replies with “I might have some parents coming after me for this, but I think we can debunk the myth. You can eat before you swim.”
Katie Ledecky is coming off a historic Olympics, even by her standards. In Tokyo, she won her 6th Olympic Gold, and her 10th overall Olympic medal. She also became the first woman to win 3 consecutive Golds in the women’s 800 free, and just the 3rd female swimmer of all-time to win 3 consecutive Olympic Golds in the same event. She also became the first-ever women’s 1500 free Olympic Champion, and did so with a tough double, wherein she raced the final of the women’s 200 free and 1500 free an hour apart.
With her 10 Olympic medals, Ledecky is now one of the most decorated Olympic swimmers of all-time, and she’s not done yet. She said in an interview after the 800 free final in TOkyo that she will be continuing on to Paris 2024, and maybe even to the 2028 Olympics.
You can watch her entire 6-minute interview with Jimmy Fallon below:
Shane Gould goat held every WR from 100m-1500m and 200IM simultaneously all before 16 years old hard to be beat that.
Ledecky came along at a time when women’s distance swimming had been lagging for a long time. I’m specifically referring to the 800 and 1500. She is solely responsible for pushing those events to the next level. There are signs that others are now following, but I strongly doubt anyone will come close to touching 8:04 or 15:20 for a very long time.
She is the GOAT…,she has it all- longevity, huge success at WC and Olympics, unbeatable WRs…in the most competitive era in swimming history. Everything from now on is icing on the cake.
In competitive swimming a swimmer has two type of measurements of success. It is a racing first of all against your opponents in the pool. You just have to be first at the wall. And medal counts is the natural measure of success. But racing itself depends really on the strengths of the field and a swimmer’s physical/mental conditions on the day of the race. So the medal counts can be used of course if nothing else is available. Swimmers have mostly one or sometimes two Olympic Games during their entire career when they are in competitive shape. How in the world a success/failure in just two meets during the entire career can be indicative of swimmer’s lifetime achievements? Isn’t… Read more »
Regardless of the Summer Olympic Games, this is all you need to know:
Katie Ledecky
FINA World Aquatics Championships
Individual Titles – 11
W 200 FR – 1
W 400 FR – 3
W 800 FR – 4
W 1500 FR – 3
Katie Ledecky
World Records (LCM) – 14
W 400 FR – 3
W 800 FR – 5
W 1500 FR – 6
Fun Fact:
Katie Ledecky owns four of the five fastest All-Time Relay Splits in the women’s 4 x 200 meter freestyle relay:
Pellegrini – 1:53.45 (2009)
Ledecky – 1:53.74 (2016)
Ledecky – 1:53.76 (2021)
Ledecky – 1:53.84 (2018)
Ledecky – 1:54.02 (2017)
Ruck – 1:54.08 (2018)
Schmitt – 1:54.09 (2012)
Schmitt – 1:54.21 (2009)
You are missing the fastest textile split from Sarah Sjostrom 1:53.64
The source you are using (USAswimming database) is incomplete.
When and where, pray tell?
2014, LEN, Berlin
Cate Campbell owns the 5 fastest 100 metres relay splits & you call her a choker.
The best result in the women’s 100 meter freestyle for Cate Campbell at the Summer Olympics has been a bronze medal.
Katie Ledecky has won a gold medal in the women’s 200 meter freestyle at the Pan Pacific Swimming Championships, FINA World Aquatics Championships, Summer Olympic Games.
Campbell has won gold in the WC & Pan Pacs in the 100. Pus the 5 fastest relay splits.
As a matter of fact she owns 7 in the top 10, the other 2 Aussies & 1 a Canadian.
Cate Campbell never won the gold medal in the women’s 100 meter freestyle at the Summer Olympics. Heck, Cate Campbell never won the gold medal in the women’s 50 meter freestyle at the Summer Olympics.
Cate Campbell
Summer Olympics
Individual Events
W 50 FR – 0G, 0S, 1B
W 100 FR – 0G, 0S, 1B
Hardly the medal haul of legends!
Even if she’s not the GOAT it doesn’t diminish her status as a brilliant swimmer .. so let’s not focus on arguing who’s the best of all time but rather appreciate that we’re in the age of some great swimmers and appreciate their achievements for what they are
As the Australian commentator said, must have been scripted for Basil (not a fan), when Titmus beat Ledecky in the 400, ‘it takes a Legend to beat a Legend’.
Beating the legend in particular race when she isn’t at peak form is not the same as beating her legend results. I’m pretty sure that let say in 15 years many swimmers at Trials can beat Ledecky should she decided to compete. But beating her personal bests may still remain beyond their abilities task.
If Titmus doesn’t go under 3:56 next year then I believe that Katie’s record has to wait for another Ariarna and for quite awhile.
Ledecky is a Legend.
400 hundred Free.
Titmus, Ledecky & Pellegrini are only women to break 4 minutes for the 400 hundred, Pellegrini did it in a supersuit. Ledecky has done it 21 times & Titmus, 4.5 years younger has done it 6 times.
Titmus time in beating Ledecky in Tokyo was only 0.24 off Ledecky’s best time & Titmus has 2 of the 3 best times ever. Would have love for Ledecky to be swimming peak time to see how much faster Titmus could have gone in Tokyo.
OH & BTW, Ledecky beaten time in Tokyo has only been bettered once by Ledecky, 5 years earlier, so to say she was not at her best… Read more »
I don’t really understand what you are arguing about.
Is 1:53.09 the outstanding result? No doubts. And I want very much this “rubber suit” record of Pellegrini to be gone. I really believe that Titmus and probably only she can do it in foreseeable future.
400 is another story. If to judge by decline of Titmus performance in the following after 400m races the 3:56.69 took almost everything she is capable of now. That’s why I assume that she has just one year only ahead to try to break Ledecky’s record. Ledecky’s and Pellegrini’s example shows that at the age of 24 it will be almost impossible to break personal best at longer distances.
800 – Titmus… Read more »
What am I arguing about, well your lack of respect for Titmus.
Titmus is a 200-400 specialist like Laure Manaudou, Camille Muffat and Federica Pellegrini.
Except in the 200
Titmus is 1.1 sec faster then Pellegrini in a non swimsuit.
Titmus is 1.5 sec faster then Muffat
Titmus is 2.4 sec faster then Manaudou
Titmus also faster then Ledecky
In the 400
Titmus is nearly 4s ec faster then Pellegrini in a non swimsuit.
Titmus is 4.3 sec faster then Muffat
Titmus is 5.3 sec faster then Manaudou
Only 1 person, once has swam faster then Titmus, yes Ledecky & only by 0.2
As for 800
Yes I agree… Read more »
Head to head Titmus prevailed in 2019 and 2021. That is the bottom line. In 2019 Ledecky was so stunned she pulled out of several events, a la Simone Biles. That comparison may not be appreciated but it was absolutely more mental than physical. Ledecky had done all the training and wasn’t prepared to accept that someone was capable of defeating her at 400. The world record means very little. Someone will come along and better it. Besides, Ledecky often tightens up head to head. It happened against Titmus and it’s happened multiple times at 200. You are conveniently assuming that Ledecky would have swam the same time in 2016 if she had someone like Titmus beside her. I’m not… Read more »
now you’re just trolling.
The Aussie trolls are so disingenuous.
I feel your hurt in every post, McKeon 2 golds, McKeown 2 golds, Titmus 2 golds must hurt.
Tokyo 2021 Olympics
Olympic Aquatics Centre
USA – 11G, 10S, 9B
AUS – 9G, 3S, 8B
You just can’t win (#G, #S, #B, Total)! Better luck next time. LOL!
Lol as opposed to the vast majority of trolls who aren’t disingenuous
Worshipping Olympic icons are better than worshipping young Hollywood celebs.
I get the point you’re trying to make (and concur with the sentiment), but don’t think that “worshipping” either is advisable. Recognizing the talent, hard work and discipline required to perform at a world-class level and admiring (even aspiring to) it, sure. I’d go there.
GOAT or not GOAT – I don’t care. I don’t really know what it means. But look, there is another dimension in measuring of Ledecky’s success that a few other swimmers if any had:
There are less talks about Ledecky’s achievements at this Olympics than let say in Rio 5 years ago. And it isn’t because she has just one medal less. And not because one individual gold medal became silver (her time in this race was of highest standards).
But the feeling of something incomplete came from the fact that her advantage over the field was not that overwhelming as it used to be during her 9 years long already swimming career.
Who cares that Dressel… Read more »
You just don’t get it.
https://youtu.be/OencLhL4UPc
You didn’t honestly believe that type of dominance would continue? I was posting here and elsewhere that 2016 would be Ledecky’s peak. All it required was following Janet Evans’ career. Ledecky did a terrific job maintaining close to her Rio form in 2017 and 2018. The fooler was 2019 world championships. Everyone foolishly accepted the sickness story as a valid excuse. Meanwhile if she had competed a full meet the dropoff would have been glaring, very similar to her 2021 results. I took heat here and elsewhere for dismissing the sickness. Who cares? I always rely on big picture and not details. Generalities overwhelm specifics.
Hogwash!
It would be good to see KL swim a best time again. Two golds and two silvers is really good tho, even tho she was not at her best. And you know you are good when you can be like 20 seconds off your best time and still crush the field.