Katie Ledecky sets new record for 1,500 meter race – almost 10 seconds: NPR
Anna Szilagyi / AP
American Olympic swimmer Katie Ledecky surpassed the world record in the 1,500-meter freestyle with a time of nearly 10 seconds.
At the World Swimming Championships in Toronto on Saturday, Ledecky hit 15 minutes and eight seconds, surpassing the 15 minutes 18 seconds record set by Germany’s Sarah Wellbrock in 2019.
“I knew that record was within reach, just based on some of the things I did in practice, especially things about my distance that have been really good this fall,” she said. . “So I feel locked into the pace and maybe a bit slack towards the end…but I tried hard enough to get the job done.”
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Ledecky, 25, has the most Olympic gold medals among female swimmers, with seven. On Sunday, she also nearly beat the world record for the 800-meter freestyle with a time of eight minutes. The record is seven minutes 59 seconds. However, she broke the US record for the event.