Katie Ledecky primed to become the new swimming star of the Olympics
The cavernous Olympic Aquatics Stadium — holding about 15,000 spectators in a temporary building that resembles an aircraft hanger — seems to be an appropriate size to house the expectations that follow Katie Ledecky into the Games.
The unassuming 19-year-old is the youngest member of the U.S. Olympic swimming team, already holds three individual world records and is a heavy favorite to win multiple gold medals during the eight-day competition that opens Saturday.
But Ledecky’s record-breaking ability in the pool is matched only by her ability to brush off the talk of history or the circus-like atmosphere at the Olympics. She seems impervious to the pressure.
“I mean this in a positive way, but she doesn’t care,” her coach Bruce Gemmell said. “She doesn’t care it’s the Olympics any more than she cares if it’s a championship meet at home, any more than she cares if it’s her high school championship. She gets excited about all of them.”
Ledecky introduced herself to the world in London by winning gold in the 800-meter freestyle as a 15-year-old not well known outside of swimming circles. Now she holds the 10 fastest times in history in the event. The lone question when she competes in her signature race is the margin of victory. Ledecky is usually so far ahead in the grueling event that she swims much of it alone, racing only the clock.
The dominance extends to the middle-distance races. Ledecky holds the world’s top times this year in the 400-meter freestyle — she also owns the world record — and the 200 freestyle.
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No swimmer has swept the 200, 400 and 800 freestyles in the same Olympics since Debbie Meyer at Mexico City in 1968.
“It was sort of something that came naturally,” said Ledecky, who postponed enrolling at Stanford until this fall to focus on preparing for the Olympics. “As I started to drop time [after London], I realized, yeah, I could be a player in all of those events on the international stage.”
She will also swim in the 800 freestyle relay and likely join the 400 freestyle relay, as well.
The outlook for U.S. swimmers not named Ledecky is less certain.
Michael Phelps, the most decorated Olympian of all time, returns for his fifth Games. He won three individual events at the U.S. Olympic swimming trials, including both butterfly races. But Phelps and longtime coach Bob Bowman weren’t satisfied with his times and promised improvement.
Phelps, 31, has pledged this will be his final Games, but added the word “potentially” for the first time earlier this week. His fiancee, Nicole Johnson, tweeted Friday that you “never know” if this will be his last one.
“This time around will be a lot more emotional than past Games,” Phelps said.
Another stalwart, 11-time Olympic medalist Ryan Lochte, qualified in only one individual event, the 200-meter individual medley, after being hampered at the trials by a groin injury. Phelps will also swim the race, setting up what could be the final showdown between the longtime rivals — and roommates in Rio de Janeiro.
Lochte predicted, however, that the lure of another Olympics will be too much for Phelps to resist and he won’t retire.
The made-for-television star in London, Missy Franklin, hasn’t found the same success that helped her to win four gold medals there at age 17. She turned pro last year, helped by a bubbly personality that’s led to a slew of endorsements.
Franklin didn’t qualify to defend her title in the 100-meter backstroke before she rallied to finish second in both the 200 backstroke and 200 freestyle during a pressure-packed trials that many swimmers believe presents a more daunting challenge than the Olympics.
“I wasn’t really prepared for the emotional aspect of coming back from 2012,” Franklin said. “That was something I really struggled with at trials.”
The U.S. dominated the pool in London with 31 medals. But only two U.S. men — backstroker David Plummer and breaststroker Josh Prenot — rank first in the world in their events this year. Lilly King is the top-ranked woman in the 100-meter breaststroke. Beyond King and Ledecky, U.S. women rank fourth or lower in seven events.
Even among the 30 first-time Olympians on the U.S. team — two more than in London — there isn’t an obvious candidate to become the story of the Games.
Ledecky’s performance will likely force her into the role.
Her matter-of-fact perspective and understated words aren’t an act. Put aside the world records and once-in-a-generation ability and she’s a teenager who hasn’t noticed any extra attention in the Olympic Village and plans on trading pins. In fact, swimming at the Games still feels “surreal” to her.
During a news conference earlier this week, Ledecky noted, in all sincerity, that one of the biggest differences between these Games and the London Olympics is that she’s swimming more events. She left out, of course, the golden expectations.
nathan.fenno@latimes.com
Twitter: @NathanFenno
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