Katie Ledecky didn’t just win gold in the women’s 800m, she blew away the field in a way you rarely see in the Olympics. From the very first lap there was no question who was going to win -- the only questions were whether Ledecky would break her own world record and by how much.
These 7 photos show how drastically Katie Ledecky obliterated the women’s 800m field to win gold
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The answers were yes and by a lot.
Only a couple laps into the race, Ledecky was already distancing herself from the field. That despite not really swimming all that hard.
The separation only grew as the laps piled on. Less than halfway through the race, Ledecky was left to only chase the world record line. At least the majority of the field was still in the picture.
That didn’t last long either. Ledecky continued to distance herself from the field. The other seven swimmers in the race -- the very best in the world -- were struggling to stay in the TV shot.
Ledecky got so far ahead by the 650m meter mark that she was swimming the opposite direction from the rest of the field for significant portions of each lap. Seeing a person pass you going the other way has to be the worst feeling for a swimmer.
The other seven swimmers aren’t even close to finishing their lap and Ledecky is almost halfway through her next lap!
As Ledecky raced for the finish, no other swimmer was even on the screen.
Seriously, Ledecky finished her race and was already turned back and looking at the time before a swimmer finally broke into view.
Katie Ledecky, you are incredible.
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