Katie Ledecky finished off her Tokyo Olympics with another gold medal, and very quickly silenced any talk of a possible retirement.
Ledecky took gold in the 800m women’s freestyle, her third straight Olympic gold in the event. The fact that Tokyo marked Ledecky’s third Olympics sparked some speculation that Friday’s swim would be her last, and that she would consider retiring from Olympic competition at the age of 24.
The question was put to Ledecky in her post-race interview with NBC, and she shot it down immediately, sounding almost surprised at the question.
"That was NOT my last swim. I'm at least going to '24."
See you in @Paris2024, @KatieLedecky. #TokyoOlympics x @TeamUSA
: NBC
: https://t.co/Hne9Yk1CKr
: NBC Sports App pic.twitter.com/s1amc6us7G— #TokyoOlympics (@NBCOlympics) July 31, 2021
Ledecky will only be 27 when the 2024 Summer Olympics take place in Paris. She also hadn’t indicated that she was even thinking about retirement. She’s still the best in the world, as she has demonstrated on more than one occasion in Tokyo. She’s still young enough to maintain that level for at least one more run and maybe beyond.
Notably, Ledecky’s win gives her six individual Olympic gold medals, the most of any female Olympic swimmer in history.
