Olympics24: USA swimmer Katie Ledecky wins 9th Olympic gold in swimming events

 

Katie Ledecky has won another gold medal at the Olympics, bringing her total Olympic gold count to nine. In Paris, she set a new record by winning the gold in the women's 800-meter freestyle. Ledecky is the second swimmer in history to win gold in the same event at four consecutive Olympics.

Ledecky won her first Olympic gold at the age of 15 during the 2012 London Olympics. Twelve years later, she continues her golden journey in Paris, claiming her ninth gold by defeating Australia's Ariarne Titmus. In Olympic history, the record for most gold medals among female athletes was held by gymnast Larisa Latynina, who competed for the Soviet Union from 1956 to 1964. Ledecky's success in the 800-meter freestyle ties her with Latynina. Ledecky won her ninth gold with a time of 8 minutes 11.04 seconds, while Titmus took silver, and American Paige Madden won bronze. This is Ledecky's second gold at the current Olympics. She is the sixth athlete to win nine Olympic golds, a feat also achieved by Latynina, Mark Spitz, Carl Lewis, and Paavo Nurmi. Michael Phelps leads with 23 golds.

In addition to her Olympic success, Ledecky has 21 gold medals in the World Swimming Championships. This time in Paris, she set a new Olympic record to win gold in the 1500-meter freestyle. She may soon match the gold medal count of her compatriot, gymnast Simone Biles, who has won seven golds so far and still has two finals remaining.