“I pinch myself everyday” – When Katie Ledecky opened up about the emotions behind winning medals at the Olympics
US swimmer Katie Ledecky is one of the greatest swimmers in the world today. With a whopping tally of 10 Olympic medals, out of which 7 are gold, she is the most decorated female swimmer.
Ledecky has been ruling the Olympic pools ever since her surprise win at the 2012 London Games at the age of 15. One would think that with three glorious runs at the Olympics, she would have gotten used to wearing the medals by now, but that is not the case.
🥇decade ago https://t.co/W90fq06YnG
After her big victories at the Tokyo Olympics last year, Katie Ledecky joined Morning Joe on MSNBC to discuss the Olympic experience, her swimming journey, and her future plans.
During the show, one of the presenters said how it gave him chills to be an American and watch another American win an Olympic gold medal for the country. Katie Ledecky echoed similar sentiments, saying she felt the same way every time she cheered for her teammates and saw them win medals.
Adding on to how she felt about winning medals, she said,
"I don't know if even my gold medal from London and 2012 has fully sunk in yet for me. I pinch myself every day,"
She further talked about representing her country in the Olympics and what the medal means for her.
"It's such an honor to represent team USA on the highest stage and to hear your national anthem, to be on that podium. You just think of all the people that went into getting you to that point. It's really just a symbol, the medal. It is a result of a lot of hard work from not just myself but from so many people"
"I wanted that American flag to be listed as the first winner of that event"—Katie Ledecky on her 1500m freestyle win
The women's 1500m freestyle event was introduced for the first time at the Tokyo Olympics. And never the one to shy away from creating history, Katie Ledecky became the first winner of the event.
Ledecky, who was already a world record holder in the 1500m freestyle, clocked 15:37.34 minutes, which went on to become the Olympic record for the debut event. Fellow US swimmer Erica Sullivan bagged the silver position with a time of 15:41.41 minutes.
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🏼 Enjoying the racing with @USASwimming and proud of my teammates, let’s keep it going! 
🥇🥈for @TeamUSA in the first-ever @Olympics Women’s 1500m free! 🙌🏼
Thanks everyone for the support over the past few (busy) days! A few more ahead! 💪🏼 Enjoying the racing with @USASwimming and proud of my teammates, let’s keep it going! 🇺🇸 https://t.co/LlUvY4xqTa
Ledecky was asked how she felt about becoming the first Olympic champion in the new event.
"It was really neat and we actually went one two in that event. And I have never gone one two with a teammate at the Olympic stage before. I have talked about the last few months, how we wanted to get team USA off to the best possible note in that event and we really did."
Katie Ledecky further spoke about how many female swimmers didn't get an opportunity to swim in 1500m freestyle event.
"There's so many great female swimmers that didn't have that opportunity to swim that event at the Olympics and they deserve to have that opportunity."
The USA has always been a dominant force in swimming for the longest time. Most of their elite swimmers end up on the podium at the Olympics. So it's clear why Katie Ledecky wanted to keep that legacy alive and well with her 1500m freestyle victory.
"Especially in the US, we have had such a legacy of great female distance swimmers and so that's why I wanted that American flag to be listed as the first winner of that event,"
Katie Ledecky has her eyes set on the upcoming 2024 Paris Olympics. And although she has never given a firm statement on whether she would consider competing at the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics, she acknowledged that it is "intriguing" and not many people get the opportunity to compete in the Olympics on home soil.