Already rated one of swimming’s all-time greats coming into the Paris Olympics, Katie Ledecky made it official by storming to victory in her signature event, the 800-metre freestyle, to end her work in the French capital in great style.
French torpedo Leon Marchand may be the prince of Paris, electrifying the home nation with four spectacular gold medals, but it is Ledecky writing her name in the record books after she claimed her ninth gold, equalling Soviet gymnast Larisa Latynina for the most by any woman in any Olympic sport.
In sharp contrast to Ledecky’s runaway win in the 1,500-metre, the 800-metre freestyle on Saturday was a thriller from start to finish, with Ariarne Titmus matching her stroke-for-stroke for almost the entire distance.
But with the American setting a relentless, grinding pace, her great Australian rival would never get her nose in front, settling for silver as Ledecky got to the wall first in a time of 8 minutes, 11.04 seconds.
Paige Madden took bronze for the United States.
It is the fourth time Ledecky has won the 800-metre freestyle and she joins compatriot Michael Phelps as the only swimmer to win gold in four different Olympics.
The 800-metre was the final event on Ledecky’s Paris card and she returns home having added two golds, a silver and a bronze, bringing her Olympic stockpile to 14 medals in all – with more possible. The 27-year-old has hinted that a home Olympics in Los Angeles in four years is on her mind.
And in a passing of the baton moment, Canada’s Summer McIntosh enhanced her status as the rising star of women’s swimming by winning her third gold medal of the games in the 200-metre individual medley.
The 17-year-old produced a brilliant late surge to win in a time of 2min 06.56sec, the third-fastest time in history.
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