Bethesda native and superstar swimmer Katie Ledecky left the competition in her wake as she easily won the gold medal Wednesday in the 1,500-meter freestyle race during the 2024 summer Olympics in Paris.
Ledecky took the lead from the start and gained water on her competitors with each stroke, until she was alone at the end of the pool when she touched the wall for the final time. She set an Olympic record with a time of 15:30.02, more than 10 seconds faster than the second-place finisher, France’s Anastasia Kirpichnikova.
Ledecky’s win marks her eighth gold medal and 12th overall in her illustrious career since she burst into a global spotlight after winning a gold medal in the 800-meter freestyle at the 2012 London games when she was just 15.
The race was Ledecky’s to win–she hasn’t lost a 1,500-meter race in 14 years, according to sports officials.
She is now tied for the most medals by any female U.S Olympian. “I just wanted to swim a time that I’m really happy with,” she told NBC after the race.
With several hundred meters to go, NBC announcer Dan Hicks said the race was “playing out like another Ledecky coronation.”
Ledecky is one of three graduates of Bethesda’s Stone Ridge School of the Sacred Heart who are members of the U.S. Olympic swimming team. Ledecky, 27, graduated in 2015, while Phoebe Bacon, 21, followed in 2020 and the 19-year-old Erin Gemmell in 2023.
The summer games mark the fourth Olympics for Ledecky. On July 27, she won her first medal of the 2024 games, taking the bronze medal in the 400-meter freestyle final.
Ledecky ‘s third-place finish in the race won by Australian swimmer Ariarne Titmus, 23, marked her 11th Olympic medal. Canadian Summer McIntosh, 17, took the silver medal.
Once dominant in the race, Ledecky, 27, was considered the underdog to Titmus, who won the gold medal at the Tokyo Olympics in 2021. Though Ledecky trailed Titmus throughout Saturday’s race, her third-place win marks her third medal in the event.
The 1500-meter freestyle was the second of Ledecky’s events. She’ll also compete in the 800- -meter freestyle event and is poised to become the most decorated female Olympic swimmer of all time.