Ledecky wins 22nd world title as Popovici savours ‘scary' gold
Katie Ledecky won the 22nd world title of her legendary career yesterday to close in on Michael Phelps's record as Olympic champions David Popovici and Kaylee McKeown also struck gold.
American great Ledecky cruised to a dominant 1,500m freestyle gold, touching the wall in 15min 26.44sec, having threatened her own world record of 15:20.48.
The masterful win in Singapore moved Ledecky four short of Phelps's career tally of 26 world gold medals.
'Growing up it was very inspiring to watch world championships, Olympic Games that Michael was in, trying to learn from the very best,' said Ledecky, 28.
'I was always a student of the sport.'
Ledecky's dominant win gave her the sixth world 1,500m freestyle title of her career. She is also a ninetime Olympic gold medallist.
Second was Simona Quadarella of Italy in 15:31.79 and third Australia's Lani Pallister in 15:41.18.
Ledecky was the red-hot favourite going into the race, having qualified for the final over 10 seconds faster than nearest challenger Pallister.
She also went into the race owning the top 24 1,500m freestyle times ever, and set the second-fastest time in history in April behind her own record.
Pallister pushed her with a fast early tempo and Ledecky was on world record pace until late in the race.
In the end she fell short of the mark but still clocked the fifth-fastest time ever.
'Lani took it out there. I knew she would be out fast and I just wanted to get out fast, but comfortable enough that I could go from there,' said Ledecky.
'I'm happy with the time and happy with the swim.'
It is Ledecky's first gold medal of the championships, after picking up a bronze behind Summer McIntosh in the 400m freestyle on Sunday's opening night in Singapore.
Ledecky is set to go head-tohead with Canadian phenomenon McIntosh again in the 800m freestyle.
Popovici claimed a thrilling 200m freestyle gold -- then revealed he had very nearly pulled out.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Daily Tribune
18 hours ago
- Daily Tribune
Zverev Secures 500th Career Win in Toronto
Email : editor@ Zverev Secures 500th Career Win in Toronto • Top seed outlasts Arnaldi in tough three-setter • Michelsen stuns Musetti • Ruud avenges Roland Garros loss • Khachanov advances in three sets Top seed Alexander Zverev celebrated a major career milestone on Thursday, notching his 500th ATP match victory with a gritty comeback win over Matteo Arnaldi at the Toronto Masters. The 27-year-old German recovered after dropping the first set to defeat Arnaldi 6-7 (5/7), 6-3, 6-2, powering into the tournament's fourth round. Zverev now joins an elite group of active players with 500 career wins — a list that includes Novak Djokovic, Marin Cilic, Gaël Monfils, and Stan Wawrinka. Notably, he achieved the feat younger than all but Djokovic. 'It's a great achievement,' said Zverev, a 24-time ATP title winner. 'Not a lot of players reach this milestone — but I still want 500 more, maybe even more!' The German showed improvement throughout the match, especially from the baseline, and closed it out on his second match point. He will next face Francisco Cerundolo, who beat Tomas Etcheverry 6-3, 6-4. Michelsen shocks Musetti Alex Michelsen, ranked 26th, stunned third-seeded Lorenzo Musetti in a thriller, winning 3-6, 7-6 (7/4), 6-4 to reach his first Masters 1000 fourth round. Despite hitting nearly 50 unforced errors and converting only 2 of 9 break chances, the 20-year-old American held his nerve and capitalized on his seventh match point. 'It feels really good,' Michelsen said. 'I've put in a lot of hard work, and I guess it's starting to pay off.' He next faces fellow American Learner Tien, who beat Reilly Opelka 7-6 (7/3), 6-3. Ruud gets revenge Eighth seed Casper Ruud came from behind to beat Portugal's Nuno Borges 7-5, 6-4 in only his fourth match since missing Wimbledon due to injury. After trailing 1-4 in the first set, Ruud broke back and gradually took control. 'I just crawled into the first set,' Ruud said. 'One break and things can happen. I raised my return game and served my way through.' Ruud, who lost to Borges at the French Open earlier this year, said it was 'nice to get my revenge.' He will next meet Karen Khachanov, the 11th seed, who rallied past American qualifier Emilio Nava 6-7 (6/8), 6-4, 6-1 to make his second Masters round of 16 appearance this season.
Daily Tribune
2 days ago
- Daily Tribune
World Athletics Mandates One-Time Gene Test for Female Category Eligibility
World Athletics announced on Wednesday that athletes must undergo a one-time gene test to compete in the female category at elite world ranking competitions, including the upcoming World Championships in Tokyo. Starting September 1, eligibility will require confirmation of the absence of the SRY gene, a marker of biological sex located on the Y chromosome. The test, conducted via cheek swab or blood, will be overseen by national athletics federations and applies to all athletes aiming to compete as female in sanctioned global events. World Athletics President Sebastian Coe said the measure aims to uphold 'the integrity of women's sport,' noting that 'gender cannot trump biology' at the elite level. The move comes after a working group determined existing regulations around sex development and transgender eligibility were insufficient. Athletics' governing body already bans transgender women who have gone through male puberty from women's events and requires athletes with Differences of Sex Development (DSD) to medically lower testosterone levels to compete. The new SRY gene requirement adds another layer of enforcement. The rule has drawn parallels with similar moves in boxing and follows ongoing legal challenges, including Olympic champion Caster Semenya's appeal of regulations requiring hormone suppression for DSD athletes. Earlier this month, a European court ruled that Semenya's 2020 appeal had not been fully heard, reopening scrutiny of athletics' sex eligibility policies.
Daily Tribune
3 days ago
- Daily Tribune
Marchand shatters record as US, Australia win more world gold
Leon Marchand smashed the 200m individual medley world record in Singapore yesterday with another breathtaking swim while Australia and the United States celebrated more gold. Racing in the semi-finals at the world championships, the 23-year-old Frenchman wiped more than a second off the previous record of 1:54.00 set by Ryan Lochte in 2011. Marchand beat Michael Phelps's long-standing 400m medley record at the world championships in Japan two years ago. 'Actually I can't believe it right now,' said Marchand, who won four individual golds in front of his home fans at the Paris Olympics a year ago and was the face of the Games. 'I knew I was going to be close to my PB (personal best) because I felt really good today and preparation has been pretty good. 'But 1:52 is unbelievable for me.' Marchand took an extended break from swimming after Paris and only returned to competition in May. He is focusing on the individual medley events in Singapore and had said he was gunning for Lochte's record. Marchand got his world championships campaign under way yesterday morning, clocking a time of 1:57.63 in the heats. He said he would go all-out for the record in the semi-finals rather than conserve his energy for Thursday's final. In yesterday's finals, Tunisia's Ahmed Jaouadi won the 800m freestyle thanks to a perfectly timed attack. Jaouadi made his move midway through the race and eased away to touch the wall in 7min 36.88sec, ahead of German pair Sven Schwarz (7:39.96) and 400m champion Lukas Maertens (7:40.19). Jaouadi, who finished fourth at last year's Paris Olympics, clocked the third-fastest time ever. 'At some point I saw that the rhythm wasn't that fast so I decided to just go and make the move,' said the 20-year-old. Ireland's Olympic champion Daniel Wiffen finished last. Australia's Olympic champion Mollie O'Callaghan was just as emphatic in romping to victory in the women's 200m freestyle in 1:53.48.
