
Katie Ledecky stubbornly refused to give up her 800-meter freestyle crown Saturday at the world championships in Singapore, winning that race for a seventh consecutive time and fending off Canada’s Summer McIntosh who led a field of talented young, would-be usurpers.
The seven world wins put Ledecky to the top of charts of most triumphs in a single event, as she passed her own record of six victories at the 1500 free and Sweden’s Sarah Sjöström of six titles in the 50 butterfly.
Ledecky said she didn’t feel too much pressure coming into this race, satisified with how she’s been training all year.
“It’s been a really great season and I think coming into tonight, no matter what the outcome was, I was gonna be really happy with my season,” she said. “And I think I just took the pressure off and allowed me to enjoy the race and kind of appreciate that moment.”
Ledecky forced the early pace with McIntosh keeping her in close range.
The young Canadian then took a brief, 0.14-second lead after 700, with Ledecky’s dominance appearing to teeter.
But the veteran found another gear in the final 100, rallying past McIntosh who fell to third behind Australia’s Lani Pallister.
“That last 100 was pretty stressful,” Ledecky said. “Lani was and Summer was right there.”
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Author: Marty Kaufmann
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