Reported by Mitch Bowmile.
WOMEN’S 800M FREESTYLE
Top seed: Katie Ledecky – 8:06.68
World record: 8:06.68 – Katie Ledecky
American record: 8:06.68 – Katie Ledecky
U.S Open record: 8:06.68 – Katie Ledecky
U.S Nationals record: 8:17.12 – Janet Evans
JR World record: 8:11.00 – Katie Ledecky
2012 Winning Time: 8:19.78 – Katie Ledecky
After the prelims of the women’s 800m freestyle Katie Ledecky now owns all 10 of the fastest performances in the history of the event. Ledecky swam an 8:10.91 to smash the U.S LC Nationals record held by Janet Evans and completely erase her from the record books.
With Ledecky’s performance, she has all major records in the 400, 800, and 1500m freestyles. This record was the last one that Evans’ held. Amazingly enough, Evans was on deck during Ledecky’s performance.
Ledecky hardly kicked for the first half of the race, then continued to descend heading into the final stretch. On the last 15-meters, Ledecky put her head down and swam the final few meters as if it were a 50, not breathing once. Her world record is in jeopardy tonight.
Leah Smith qualified second behind Ledecky in 8:21.65 and is the second seed by a wide margin. It appears as though tonight’s race will likely be between Ledecky and Smith.
Smith seems out of it now, but she made a case in the 400m freestyle that she can keep things closer to Ledecky than anyone else in the world.
TOP 8
- Katie Ledecky (8:10.91)
- Leah Smith (8:21.64)
- Ashley Twichell (8:28.96)
- Haley Anderson (8:30.96)
- Lindsay Vrooman (8:31.53)
- Cierra Runge (8:31.59)
- Stephanie Peacock (8:31.81)
- Sierra Schmidt (8:32.46)
For official results click here.
She WILL break 8:00. Maybe not this year, but before she’s done. And that record will stand for 20 years or more.
Ridiculous statement for an equally ridiculous swimmer 🙂
What can one say apart from WHAT A SWIMMER!!!!!
Seems clear that her optimum cycle rate is perfect for the 800 and 1500 free events. When she speeds it up and has a choppier stroke, she has less success achieving time drops in the 400, 200 and 100, although, of course, she is still successful achieving fast times and gold medals. When she swam the 400 earlier in this meet, the first 200 was very fast but a far less natural cycle rate and stroke for her. I can’t get over the silliness of a lack of a 1500 race for women – or, for that matter, the 800 for men – which deprives us of a chance to see her chip away more and more time from that… Read more »
Wait, she straight up decided to do some speed drills in the middle of her 800 prelim…at OTs….and goes an 8:10…
I can’t…
When you listen to the beginning with full volume earphones. Something like that.
She could accidentally break the 1500m world record cooling down if that’s “easy swimming”
After the race they put a split screen up of her underwater early in the race and the last 100 or so. Early on she was doing basically a 1 beat kick, flicking her left foot every cycle. Floating an 8:10 is other worldly…
I conducted a quick poll during the prelims if people think Katie will break 800 WR tomorrow night:
http://swimswam.com/2016-u-s-olympic-trials-day-six-prelims-live-recap/#comment-434644
As I am writing this, here’s the result:
73 said Yayy Katie will break WR
24 said Nayy she won’t (but most likely in Rio, is my own reading of this answer)