Meanwhile, in a stunner, Michael Phelps has been beaten. “I saw it right before I left for the session tonight so I’m just so proud to be a part of that history”.
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“He doesn’t cry very often and I don’t cry very often”, Ledecky said. If a 12-second win in the final of an Olympic race isn’t the sign of a juggernaut, I’m not sure what is. “I need to chill by myself and realize what I’ve done”.
Schooling earned Singapore’s maiden Olympic gold by comfortably topping a star-studded field in the men’s 100m butterfly final. “Last night, I probably got the most sleep I’ve gotten all week”.
“I hope 20 years from now somebody else is doing something close and somebody’s picking up the phone and calling me”, he said. “I’m looking forward to watching how he progresses over the next four years”.
The fastest man in the world – Usain Bolt, the two-time defending champion – also appears on the Rio track for the first time Saturday for preliminary heats.
She is her own breed of dominance, smooth and sleek and lethal, particularly in distance events.
Her quest for a new 800 frontier felt like a valedictory address as much as a race.
Jazz Carlin’s new-found confidence propelled her to a second Olympic medal in Rio.
If you like untouchable supremacy, she dished that up in her 400 freestyle swims. American Raven Saunders finished fifth at 19.35 meters, with that mark being registered on her final attempt and a personal record as well. But as her sweep of individual events in Rio showed, that polish is now shining brilliantly.
After her impressive win, Twitter responded to the race with shock and incredulity, creating hashtags and memes around the memorable event. While her rivals splash around, Ledecky twists through the water as if she’s being pulled by some hidden line.
“The rest of the field was Olympic medallists and world medallists so I knew it was a tough field as well as Katie being in the race”.
Ledecky’s admirers include numerous biggest names in the sport. She won by almost 12 seconds.
But Ledecky is eager to get on to the next phase of her life. The diving well re-opened just 2 1/2 hours before the start of the women’s 3-meter competition. She broke down in tears, relishing her accomplishments and surely thinking about all the work she put in to make it there.
The Americans (4-0) had been scoring at a record pace, topping 100 points in each of their first three contests – the first time a team’s done that at the Olympics. “I couldn’t have gone any faster, it’s impossible”. “She’s been the most dominant female freestyler probably ever”. Katie doesn’t swim as many events.
In his role as team uncle, Phelps went even further, praising the entire next generation of USA swimmers.
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“I’ve really looked up to Debbie and all the women’s freestyle swimmers in the United States team”. “I hit all of my goals and had so much fun”.
