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Katie Ledecky | Tokyo 2020 Olympic Profile

Team USA swimmer Katie Ledecky shares how she has attacked training throughout her run to the last three Olympic games, and explains which races she plans to compete in in Tokyo.

Video Transcript

KATIE LEDECKY: I really enjoy the day to day and just that challenge of trying to get better. And I think just thinking back the years. And I've-- I've swam in the Olympics when I was 15 in 2012.

And I grew a lot as a trainer between 2012 and 2016 to the point that the year before 2016, I was just training at a level I had never trained up before and just going times that are, yeah, just pretty fast. And you know, I'm kind of maintain that level of training that I got to before-- before Rio over the past 44 plus years now.

And I've tried to continue to improve, which is really fun. And working towards swimming the 200, 400, 800, 1,500, and hopefully the 4 by 2 freestyle relay as well.

So yeah, with the addition of the 1500 free, there is the potential that there will be a double or two doubles kind of on my schedule. So the 200 free and the 1,500 free the prelims of those races those are in the same session for the women. And the 200 and 1,500 free finals are also in the same session.

So that's a little bit of a challenge for me and something that I'm really training for. I would point out that the men do not have that double. So any male swimmer that wants to compete in all those events. I don't know if there are any that are actually attempting that.

They do not have the double. But I'm excited for the challenge and excited to really show my range and have that opportunity to both, you know, compete hopefully in the shorter races like the 200, which I-- I swam in Rio, and also in the 1500s for the first time at the Olympics for women, which is extremely exciting.

And just something that I want to kick off the US on a good note for-- for that race. I think there have been so many great female distance swimmers that have come through the US that haven't had that opportunity. So I want to take advantage of that opportunity and really get us started on a great note there.