Swimmer Katie Ledecky breaks 800m freestyle world record
American swimmer Katie Ledecky has shattered her own 800m freestyle world record on Saturday.
She clocked 8 minutes 4.12 seconds at the Tyr Pro Series meet in Fort Lauderdale, Florida to better her previous mark of 8:04.79 which she set at the 2016 Rio Olympics.
It was a tactical race from Ledecky who paced it masterfully surfing ahead through 400m. She ceded her lead at the 450m and 500m but was back in the lead by 550m and a powerful final leg saw her break the world record.
The record-breaking swim capped an extraordinary series of performances for Ledecky, who posted her second-fa 400m freestyle time on Thursday. This was her best timing in nine years – and the second-fastest 1500m freestyle time in history on Wednesday.
Ledecky's most recent world record before this was in the 1500m in May 2018 in a 50m pool came into the 1500m freestyle. The 28-year-old holds 15 world records in the 50m pool.
WORLD RECORD for Katie Ledecky! 🇺🇸
The First Lady of Freestyle bests her time from the 2016 Rio Olympics in the 800m.
🎥: USASwimming | #TYRProSeries pic.twitter.com/OL3D6B1yZ4
— NBC Olympics & Paralympics (@NBCOlympics) May 3, 2025
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Who is Katie Ledecky?
At the age of 28, Katie Ledecky is one of the most decorated swimmers in the World and US history. She has won a total of nine Olympic gold medals and 21 World Championship medals. Ledecky is the fifth-most decorated athlete in the Olympic history.
Ledecky was one of the surprising stories from the 2012 London Olympics as then 15-year-old surprised everyone by winning the gold medal in the 800m freestyle.
At the 2016 Rio Olympics, Ledecky emerged as the most decorated female athlete with four gold medals, one silver medal, and two world records.
Ledecky became the first American female swimmer to win an individual event in three straight Olympics at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics and emerged as the most decorated U.S. female athlete.
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