“Honestly, the Korean doctor freaking out had kind of freaked me out, I was scared,” Katie Ledecky revealed in her recently released book. While the US swimming sensation always remained away from controversies, in 2019, she was plagued by one. It all started before Ledecky landed in Gwangju, South Korea, for the World Championships. Things were already looking bad, as the 22-year-old spoke about how she lost her appetite during training camp. Yet, she ignored the signals, hoping for a smooth performance at the Nambu University Municipal Aquatics Center.

Katie Ledecky was eagerly anticipated to compete in the 200m, 400m, 800m, and 1500m freestyle events, as well as the 4x200m freestyle relay. Both the home crowd and the legions of U.S. swimming enthusiasts had marked their calendars, eager to witness the queen of the pool weave her magic once again. However, their hopes were dashed as a sudden illness forced Ledecky to withdraw from two of her scheduled events, casting a cloud over her highly anticipated performance.

What went wrong? – the mistake that cost Katie Ledecky two golds

“I noticed I’d lost a little weight. Three or four pounds, which is significant for an athlete in peak form,” Katie revealed in her memoir. Red circles covered her bare skin, adding to the unbearable stomach pain. But Katie being Katie, ignored the signals again, heading to the arena to compete in the 400m freestyle. She was going against Ariarne Titmus, the Australian maestro, who soon wiped her out.

But did this allow Katie Ledecky to hold back? Absolutely not! She then participated in the 1500 prelims, securing a place in the finals with the fastest time. However, when she returned, things started falling out. The heat in Gwangju became her worst enemy, navigating her toward the hospital as she sat in the waiting room wondering about everything that went wrong.

“There was a cafeteria for athletes. A serve yourself, wherever everyone was using the same ladles and spoons to dish out their food,” her thoughts speaking in her voice. This is when she realized the poor conditions of the athletes’ village, let alone the disgusting sanitation. Due to a lack of hotels in the area, the host had built a temporary setup for swimmers to reside. It consisted not just of food amenities, but also accommodation until the end of the event.

Sadly, the sanitation was a joke. Flies flying around, people getting sick, athletes taste-testing, and putting the food back became normal. After all, Katie spoke about something that would ick a lot, thanks to the ignorant chefs. “People said the cooks were using the same utensils to handle raw meat as they were using in cooked dishes.”

From there, the 22-year-old had scare after scare as the blood reports hinted of a heart attack. One knows high troponin can be the cause of portend sepsis, atrial fibrillation, congestive heart failure, pulmonary embolism, myocarditis, or renal failure. Thanks to god! Ledecky soon learned that it was food poisoning due to a virus-like fluid in the heart. The Korean doctor immediately got to work, making necessary adjustments for Katie Ledecky’s good health.

And later, her team doctor also got involved and collectively pulled her out of the scare. Soon, the US star walked back to the arena, winning the 800m freestyle & a silver in the 4×200 freestyle relay right behind Australia. One ignorant decision almost cost Katie Ledecky her career, but thanks to the doctors & ER staff who acted at the right time. Since then, the swimmer has been reaching new heights, breaking record after record. The only mountain for her to climb now is the Paris Olympics.