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OMAHA, NEBRASKA – JUNE 15: Katie Ledecky of the United States reacts after competing in a preliminary heat for the Women’s 1500m freestyle during Day Three of the 2021 U.S. Olympic Team Swimming Trials at CHI Health Center on June 15, 2021 in Omaha, Nebraska. (Photo by Tom Pennington/Getty Images)
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OMAHA, NEBRASKA – JUNE 15: Katie Ledecky of the United States reacts after competing in a preliminary heat for the Women’s 1500m freestyle during Day Three of the 2021 U.S. Olympic Team Swimming Trials at CHI Health Center on June 15, 2021 in Omaha, Nebraska. (Photo by Tom Pennington/Getty Images)
American swimming sensation Katie Ledecky is one of the greatest swimmers of all time. She holds the record for women’s 800-, and 1500-meter freestyle (long course). Just a few weeks ago, we’d have seen the 400m freestyle on that list as well.
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But her rival, Australian swimmer Ariarne Titmus, broke that record on May 22 during the Australian Championships. And Ledecky claims she saw it coming.
Katie Ledecky on losing the 400m record
At the 2016 Summer Olympic Games, Katie Ledecky won the gold medal in the 400m freestyle finals with a record time of 3:56.46. Six years later, her record was finally broken by 21-year-old Titmus. At the Australian Swimming Championships, Titmus clocked 3:56.40 to take six hundredths off Ledecky’s world record.
“I expected it, to be honest,” Ledecky said on Titmus’ record. “I had seen how she was swimming that whole week at her trials. She was right on her times, and I knew it was a real possibility. So I wasn’t surprised.”
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TOKYO, JAPAN – JULY 31: Katie Ledecky of the United States reacts after winning the 800m Freestyle for women during the Swimming Finals at the Tokyo Aquatic Centre at the Tokyo 2020 Summer Olympic Games on July 31, 2021 in Tokyo, Japan. (Photo by Tim Clayton/Corbis via Getty Images)
But Ledecky is neither deterred nor upset about being overtaken. She claimed, “It’s great for the sport, great to have somebody like that to race at these meets. And I know that there are other swimmers as well in that event that are coming up that are going to be very competitive over the next couple of years.”
It serves as a motivation for the 25-year-old swimmer with 7 Olympic titles to keep giving her best. “So definitely keeps me on my toes. And I think we’ll continue to have some great races,” Ledecky added.
When will Ledecky and Titmus face off again?
The two swimmers have a healthy rivalry between them. At the Tokyo 2020 Olympics, Ariarne Titmus defeated Katie Ledecky in two of her mainstay events, 400m, and 200m freestyle. However, Titmus lost the 800m title to Ledecky.
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Unfortunately, it seems that the two champions will not be competing against each other in 2022. Titmus announced months ago that she will not be competing at the World Championships this year. Instead, she will focus on the Commonwealth Games this summer.
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TOKYO, JAPAN – JULY 26: Ariarne Titmus of Team Australia and Katie Ledecky of Team United States react after competing in the Women’s 400m Freestyle Final on day three of the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games at Tokyo Aquatics Centre on July 26, 2021 in Tokyo, Japan. (Photo by Al Bello/Getty Images)
Ledecky plans to compete at the World Championships in Budapest and then the U.S. Championships in late July. And though Titmus is undecided on the Duel in the Pool in August, Ledecky has already decided to abstain from it.
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It is interesting to see how the two swimmers will push each other to grow in the coming years. Just in their early twenties, they are already breaking records and making history in the world of swimming.
DIVE DEEPER: Katie Ledecky Will Miss Conquering Over Michael Phelps’ Record Despite Being Close- Here’s Why
