A true legend is Katie Ledecky. These are the accolades she has received that attest to that.
Katie Ledecky was so far ahead of her rivals in the 1500m freestyle event that no other swimmers were captured on video as she concluded her gold medal winning run.
In the women’s 1500-meter freestyle event on Wednesday, swimmer Katie Ledecky of Team USA claimed another gold medal at the Olympics, cemented her status as the greatest swimmer of all time (GOAT).
You may see the highlights here if you missed the Bethesda native blowing past everyone else in the pool meters. (Sadly, at the end of the race, the cameraman literally had to zoom out to capture the other swimmers in the picture; that is not included in the highlights.)
Her performance in the women’s 1500m freestyle event in the 2024 Summer Olympics in Paris broke the Olympic record for the fastest race. For the former owner of that record, well, that was also Ledecky, so it would be bittersweet.
We were curious as to how many more records Katie Ledecky owned after that.
The following is a rundown of Katie Ledecky’s many swimming accolades, records, and superlatives.
How many medals has Katie Ledecky won in the Olympics?
Ledecky swam in both the 2016 Rio and 2020 Tokyo Olympics after making her debut in the London Olympics in 2012. Her fourth Olympic Games are in Paris.
Ledecky has won an incredible 12 Olympic medals in that period, including the 1500-meter triumph on Wednesday.
Ledecky is far from finished yet. She is expected to take home another medal in Thursday’s 4x200m freestyle relay, making her the most decorated American woman in Olympic history.
Jenny Thompson, an American swimmer who participated in 1992, 1996, and 2000, is the only other female swimmer to have won as many gold medals as Ledecky.
As of Wednesday, Thompson and Ledecky are tied for the most gold medals won by an Olympic female swimmer from any nation.
In women’s swimming, Ledecky is also just one medal away from setting a record for the most medals ever won by an American athlete. In the event that Ledecky wins a medal in Thursday’s 4×200-meter freestyle relay, her 13 medals will place her in the elite group with Thompson, Dana Torres, and Natalie Coughlin.
According to NBC Olympics, Michael Phelps still owns the record for the most Olympic gold medals ever won, with a staggering 23.
Time records
According to NBC Olympics, Ledecky has broken world records more than a dozen times and owns world records in two different disciplines.
And recall how she beat her personal Olympic record in the 1500m freestyle race? Most of the times Ledecky has broken a swimming record, that has occurred.
Ledecky holds the top 20 fastest times in the history of the women’s 1500m freestyle competition. It makes sense, considering that she can accomplish feats like winning her preliminary heat in 17.83 seconds.
Ledecky is the current world record holder in the 800m freestyle competition.
Has Katie Ledecky ever been defeated?
In both the 800- and 1500-meter freestyle events at world championships and the Olympics, Katie Ledecky has never lost.
Ariarne Titmus, an Australian, defeated Ledecky by almost 0.5 seconds in the 400m freestyle in Tokyo. In the 400-meter freestyle on Saturday in Paris, Titmus also triumphed over Ledecky and Summer McIntosh of Canada.
Katie Ledecky “is easily the greatest distance swimmer of all time, regardless of gender,” according to NBC Olympics. In events longer than 400 meters, no swimmer comes close to her record.
For what number of Olympics did Katie Ledecky compete?
Ledecky has participated in four Olympics. Her first came in London in 2012, when she was fifteen years old and took home a gold medal in the women’s 800m freestyle.
Ledecky took home four gold medals from freestyle events in 2016—the women’s 200-, 400-, and 800-meter freestyles as well as the 4×200-meter freestyle relay—along with a silver in the 4×100-meter freestyle relay.
Ledecky took home two gold in the women’s 800 and 1500 freestyle events as well as two silver in the women’s 400 and 4×200 freestyle relay events in Tokyo.
Ledecky has earned a bronze in the women’s 400-meter freestyle and a gold in the women’s 1500-meter freestyle thus far in Paris.
