Ledecky poised to win 3rd individual title at US swim trials

When she pulled up to the 14,000-seat CenturyLink Center, she saw her face on the building’s exterior and did what any 19-year-old would do with a big print of her face on a building: She took a selfie with it. At the event, she medaled in only one event, finishing third in the 100-meter backstroke.

Katie Ledecky swims in the women’s 800-meter freestyle final at the U.S. Olympic swimming trials, Saturday, July 2, 2016, in Omaha, Neb. “CNN – that’s my go-to”.

Obviously, the folks at NBC will be rooting hard for Franklin and Ledecky to beat the odds and take the top two spots in both races. Almost a half-century later, Meyer has been the one glued to the television, watching Ledecky develop into the most formidable all-around freestyler of her, or possibly any, generation. At the beckoning of the stadium announcer, the 14,000 fans jammed into CenturyLink Center stood on their feet and jumped up and down, hoping to witness history. A couple of times a week, Ledecky said, she and Gemmell go head-to-head in training. “I still got second place and I’m going to Rio”. Let’s not get carried away. “Just need to get my hand on the wall as fast as I can”. But you can never be sure of that.

Those are the four Olympic events for which Ledecky, 19, qualified at Olympic trials, and the four events most likely to keep alive her streak of having never lost a final at a major global meet. She also set three world records along the way.

The 28-year-old Vollmer, a four-time gold medalist, was cheered on by her husband and their young son, Arlen. But with a:30.90 final split, Ledecky’s winning time of 3:58.98 missed the mark by.61 seconds.

Katie Ledecky and Leah Smith after the women’s freestyle 400m final at the US Olympic swimming team trials.

Instead of trudging through repeats of 800 meters, which Meyer did routinely, Ledecky is more apt to swim a set of eight 100s, each at race speed.

As a noxious algae bloom fouls beaches on Florida’s Atlantic coast, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers is preparing to reduce the flow of water from Lake Okeechobee that many blame for fueling the problem.

Added Gemmell: “If you know Katie, that’s pretty indicative of her right there”.

Smith said after her race that it had been a goal since she was a little girl to break four minutes. But Ledecky is so dominant in longer distances because she’s able to maintain a sprinter’s stroke throughout.

“The thing we can tweak is that she got nervous”, Rose said Friday. “That would be a stupid plan”.

The world will be expecting a similar show of dominance in Rio. In most events, the question is not whether Ledecky is going to win but by how much.

Time will tell how much Smith, 20, can grow into a rival for Ledecky, but her reaction is a slice of why she’s become swimming’s newest darling.

Ledecky, who will enter Stanford in the fall, is far too humble to count her gold medals before they are won. Ledecky is in line to match Debbie Meyers’ sweep of the 200, 400 and 800 freestyles at the 1968 Mexico City Olympics. For Ledecky, that type of outing is like a warmup swim.

Smith’s time of 4:00.65 was three seconds faster than anyone else in the world.

OMAHA, Neb. (AP) — Katie Ledecky set herself up to swim a third individual event in Rio, qualifying fastest for the 800-meter freestyle at the USA trials Friday.

Lochte, victor of 11 Olympic medals and runner-up to Phelps in the 200 IM in 2004 and 2012, is the world champion and record holder in the event and looking to qualify for his first individual event at Rio Games. It isn’t all that laughable.

Smith, 21, who has won the 500-yard and 1,650-yard freestyles at the NCAA championships the past two years, looked shocked when she glanced at the giant video board and saw her time.

“No”, he said. “There”.