Category: Women’s Swimming & Diving

PHOTOS: Checking in on Katie Ledecky at Paris Olympics

Take a look at some highlights from Ledecky’s performance at the Paris Olympics so far. 

Women’s swimming legend [autotag]Katie Ledecky[/autotag] is off to a strong start to her fourth Olympic Games the past several days in Paris.

With her bronze medal in the 400-meter freestyle on Saturday, Ledecky now has 11 Olympic medals with an eye on becoming the most decorated female Olympic swimmer of all time. She sits just one award away from tying Jenny Thompson, Dara Torres, Natalie Coughlin and Emma McKeon — all of whom are tied at the top with 12 apiece.

Along with fellow American Katie Grimes, Ledecky competed in the third and final heat for Wednesday’s 1500m freestyle finals, easily qualifying after taking an early lead that only grew as the race progressed. The volunteer Florida swim coach is very likely to medal in that event, earning her a share of Olympic immortality.

Take a look below at some highlights from Ledecky’s performance at the Paris Olympics so far. The 1500m freestyle finals will be held on Wednesday, July 31 at 2:04 p.m. ET.

Katie Ledecky eyes Olympic history in Paris this summer

Ledecky is heading to her fourth Olympic Games after earning a berth in the U.S. Olympic Trials, becoming the ninth U.S. swimmer to qualify at least four times for the sport’s grandest stage.

The 2024 Paris Olympics is set to start this week and one of many participants the Gator Nation has its eye on is the women’s swimming team volunteer assistant coach Katie Ledecky, who has been training with the Gators in recent years.

Ledecky is heading to her fourth Olympic Games after earning a berth in the U.S. Olympic Trials, becoming the ninth U.S. swimmer to qualify at least four times for the sport’s grandest stage.

CBS Sports writer Zachary Pereles had some things to say about Ledecky’s Olympic bid.

“If Katie Ledecky has anything to say about it, the U.S.’s spot atop worldwide swimming will remain. Ledecky has 10 Olympic medals in her distinguished career, two from tying Dara Torres, Jenny Thompson and Natalie Coughlin for most by a female swimmer. Seven of Ledecky’s 10 Olympic medals are gold.

“Ledecky is a distance specialist and absolutely dominant in the 800 and 1500 — she holds the world’s top 10 times in the 1500 — and will be a big part of the U.S.’s relay teams too.”

2024 Paris Olympics coverage

The Games will feature 16 days of competition — starting on Wednesday, July 24, and ending on Sunday, Aug. 11 — with approximately 10,500 athletes from more than 200 nations participating in this summer’s Olympics.

NBC Web Peacock
Web NBC Olympics.com
TV NBC
App NBC Sports
App Peacock

Follow us @GatorsWire on X, formerly known as Twitter, and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Florida Gators news, notes and opinions.

Florida’s Casey Greenberg earns lone Gators women’s diving Olympics berth

The Florida Gators will be well-represented in Paris for the Olympic Games.

Florida’s diving standout [autotag]Casey Greenberg[/autotag] concluded the U.S. Olympic trials with a 495.20 combined-score performance to finish tenth among her fellow countrywomen, earning her a spot on the Paris Olympics team roster.

Greenberg opened the finals session with a 54.60, adding to her 246.30 semifinal score set Friday night. The rising junior followed that up with a 54.00 on her forward 3 1/2 somersault pike to head into the halfway mark with a 354.90 total score.

The Gainesville native’s next two dives scored below 45.00, but she ended her final attempt on a high note. She scored 55.20 on her forward 2 1/2 somersault 1 twist pike to close her trials competition with 495.20 for 10th place.

GATORS COMPETING IN PARIS

  • Maha Amer – Egypt
  • Julie Brousseau – Canada
  • Josh Liendo – Canada
  • Nicole Maier – Germany
  • Jonny Marshall – Great Britain
  • Alfonso Mestre – Venezuela
  • Alberto Mestre – Venezuela
  • Aleksas Savickas – Lithuania
  • [autotag]Caeleb Dressel[/autotag] – USA
  • [autotag]Bobby Finke[/autotag] – USA
  • [autotag]Kieran Smith[/autotag] – USA
  • Emma Weyant – USA
  • Luke Whitlock – USA

Olympics details

Swimming at the 2024 Olympic Games will be held at the Paris La Defense Arena, located in the city of Nanterre. Indoor swimming kicks off July 27 and runs through August 4; in total, 35 medal events will be competed.

The Olympic swimming competition concludes with the men’s and women’s open water (10km marathon swimming) races taking place Aug. 8-9. The full Team USA roster for the Olympic Games Paris 2024 will be confirmed in July.

Follow us @GatorsWire on X, formerly known as Twitter, and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Florida Gators news, notes and opinions.

Highlights from Katie Ledecky’s Olympic qualifiers, 400-meter freestyle win

The Gators will be represented in the Olympics by one of their volunteer coaches. Here’s a look at her efforts on Saturday.

Women’s swimming legend [autotag]Katie Ledecki[/autotag] punched a ticket to her fourth Olympic Games on Saturday night with a win in the 400-meter freestyle at the U.S. swimming trials.

A crowd of 20,689 cheered her and her competitors on at the home of the NFL’s Indianapolis Colts and watched as Ledecky touched the wall in the temporary pool set up for the event in 3 minutes and 58.35 seconds.

“I pride myself on that consistency,” she said. “Sometimes it can be tough to feel you’re not having a breakthrough. But being really consistent is something I’m really happy with. I’ve learned to really enjoy training and take advantage of the moment.”

Below is a look at highlights from Ledecki’s efforts at the U.S. swimming trials this weekend.

Swimming legend, Gators volunteer coach heading to her 4th Olympics

Ledecky became just the ninth U.S. swimmer to qualify at least four times for the sport’s grandest stage.

Florida women’s swimming team’s volunteer assistant coach [autotag]Katie Ledecki[/autotag], who has been training with the Gators in recent years, is heading to her fourth Olympic Games after cruising to victory in the 400-meter freestyle at the U.S. swimming trials on Saturday night.

Ledecky became just the ninth U.S. swimmer to qualify at least four times for the sport’s grandest stage.

“I pride myself on that consistency,” she said. “Sometimes it can be tough to feel you’re not having a breakthrough. But being really consistent is something I’m really happy with. I’ve learned to really enjoy training and take advantage of the moment.”

Cheered on by a crowd of 20,689 at the home of the NFL’s Indianapolis Colts, Ledecky touched the wall in the temporary pool in 3 minutes, 58.35 seconds. She improved on her time of 3:59.99 in the morning preliminaries and set herself up to make a run at another gold against a loaded field at the Paris Games.

Follow us @GatorsWire on X, formerly known as Twitter, and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Florida Gators news, notes and opinions.

Florida women’s swimming and diving earn wins to start off the season

Florida Gators swim team opened the 2023 season with a victory over the Vanderbilt Commodores.

The Florida women’s swimming and diving team is off to a great start after earning its first victory of the year in the season opener.

Florida out-swam the Vanderbilt Commodores, 180-75, up north in Nashville, Tennessee, while the dive team made its debut in Coral Gables to take on the Miami Hurricanes.

The Gators were victorious in every event against Vandy and were led by freshman Bella Sims and senior Isabel Ivey. Both swimmers made their debuts for the Orange and Blue, finishing in first place during three of their own events.

Ivey, a California transfer, took the top spot in the 200-meter freestyle with a time of 1:47.44, followed by a win in the 50-meter freestyle and 200-meter IM.

Sims finished in the top spot in the 100-meter backstroke, freestyle and butterfly. The Olympic silver medalist led off the Gators in the 200-meter medley relay, which also swam her to the top of the podium.

Up next for the Gators is a home meet against the Virginia Cavaliers on Oct. 13, leaving plenty of preparation time for the Orange and Blue. Florida will then host the Georgia Bulldogs on Oct. 27.

Follow us @GatorsWire on Twitter and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Florida Gators news, notes and opinions.

PHOTOS: Highlights from Katie Ledecky’s 1500m gold medal at Fukuoka 2023

Check out this gallery of highlights from Katie Ledecky’s gold medal-winning effort at the World Aquatics Championships Fukuoka 2023.

The World Aquatics Championships Fukuoka 2023 kicked off Saturday, July 22, and included a handful of Florida Gators among its competitors. Among the members of the Orange and Blue competing in the event is former assistant coach [autotag]Katie Ledecky[/autotag], who already earned a silver medal in the 400-meter freestyle on Sunday.

The decorated Olympian took this to the next level on Tuesday morning in the Land of the Rising Sun, the most decorated female swimmer in the worlds competition with 20 golds overall —15 of which have come in individual events, including the one she just earned in the 1500-meter freestyle. The mark ties Michael Phelps’ record in world competition for individual gold medals.

She won with a time 15 minutes, 26.27 seconds — the third quickest time of her career and 17 seconds ahead of the remainder of the competition.

Take a look below at highlights from Ledecky’s record-tying effort at the World Aquatics Championships Fukuoka 2023.

PHOTOS: Highlights from Katie Ledecky’s 400m silver medal at Fukuoka 2023

Check out this gallery of highlights from Katie Ledecky’s silver medal-winning effort at the World Aquatics Championships Fukuoka 2023.

The World Aquatics Championships Fukuoka 2023 kicked off Saturday, July 22, and included a handful of Florida Gators among its competitors. One of the standouts in the 400-meter freestyle event was former volunteer coach [autotag]Katie Ledecky[/autotag], who earned a silver medal with a 3:58.73 swim time.

The hardware was the 23rd World Championships medal of her career.

Prior to her medal-winning effort, Ledecky swam a 4:00.80 in the 400-meter event, giving her a slightly better than two-second improvement between the two.

Take a look below at a gallery of highlights from Katie Ledecky’s silver medal-winning effort at the World Aquatics Championships Fukuoka 2023.

5 former Florida Gators who left school at the right time

Pat Dooley lists five Gators who were right to leave school when they did.

In the world of college athletics – which right now is both confusing and rewarding – careers are made by decisions.

It starts early with athletes deciding where they will visit, then where they will commit and finally where they sign. Nowadays, it’s a yearly decision about whether to stay or jump into the transfer portal.

Finally, it’s a decision for the elite (and some not so elite) to turn pro early or use all of their eligibility.

[autotag]Trinity Thomas[/autotag] is facing that decision even though she has been amazing for four full years. Because she has a pandemic year she can still use, Thomas could return for a fifth season and use it as a bridge to the next Olympics.

Thomas would be one of those athletes in Florida history who could choose to leave and we would all say, “Thanks.” The voice would be loud, too, because she is in the argument for greatest gymnast ever at Florida and perhaps the NCAA.

We’ll wait for her to announce, but while we do that, let us look at 10 UF athletes who left early and most Gator fans just wanted to give them a hug and wish them well. They had done enough.

Today, the first five of the top 10 of those athletes. Tomorrow, the second five plus a few that we were wondering what they were thinking.