clock: Katie Ledecky reveals the secret to winning Olympic gold
The 2024 U.S. Olympic Swimming Trials are underway in Indianapolis, and Katie Ledecky, the greatest female swimmer in U.S. history, has already made her fourth Olympic team in Paris.
U.S. swimmer Katie Ledecky qualifies for Paris Olympics
The superstar swimmer from Maryland swam the 400-meter freestyle in 3 minutes, 58.35 seconds, solidifying her place on the U.S. team for the upcoming Summer Olympics.
Ledecky led her competitors by a full body length for much of the race and was the only runner to finish under four minutes.
Read more: Katie Ledecky surpasses Michael Phelps for new world swimming individual title record
A seven-time Olympic gold medalist and 21-time world championship winner, she first came to prominence when she won gold in the 800m freestyle at the 2012 London Games aged just 15.
Ledecky has since gone on to become Olympic champion in every freestyle distance from 200 meters to 1,500 meters.
She is now the eighth American swimmer to qualify for four Olympic Games.
Athletes to watch at U.S. Olympic Swimming Trials
On Saturday, 21-year-old Gretchen Walsh, one of the young stars of the U.S. team, swam a stunning lap in the semifinals, breaking the world record.
The 6-foot-2, University of Virginia graduate set a new world record in the 100-meter butterfly semifinals with a time of 55.18 seconds, beating the previous record of 55.48 seconds set by Swedish swimmer Sarah Sjostrom in 2016.
Until Saturday, Walsh had never recorded a time under 56 seconds.
Though he didn't set a new world record, Walsh won Sunday's final and qualified for Paris, where the then-18-year-old narrowly missed out on a spot in Tokyo but will likely be a key part of the U.S. team.
The greatest trial story to date is that of Gabrielle Rose.
The 46-year-old Rose, who last competed at the Sydney Summer Olympics in 2000, surprised everyone by qualifying and reaching the semi-finals of the 100m breaststroke. Rose had been swimming in senior competitions and after some of the best swims of her life decided to give the Trials a try. Unfortunately, her Cinderella story ended with a fifth-place finish in Sunday's semi-finals, but she still set a personal best.
Of the 16 women who made it to the semi-finals of the 100m breaststroke, only Lily King was alive when Rose swam in Sydney 24 years ago.
The breaststroke queen took first place in the semifinals with a time of 1 minute, 5.57 seconds and is set to compete in Monday's final. The five-time Olympic medalist is seeking to make her third U.S. team in Paris.
