“Always fun to end the meet with my favorite event”: 800m gold medalist Katie Ledecky reflects on her 2023 World Aquatics Championship performance

American swimmer Katie Ledecky put in brilliant performances at the 2023 World Aquatics Championships in Fukoka, Japan, and shared a heartfelt message after the tournament's conclusion. On Saturday, the 26-year-old created history, securing her 16th world title by winning the 800-meter freestyle event.

With an impressive time of 8:08.87, Ledecky won her 16th world title and broke American legend Michael Phelps' record for most individual world swimming titles. Her win also marked her sixth consecutive women’s 800-meter freestyle world title, the longest single-event streak in the history of the championships.

Besides Ledecky’s stunning finish, silver medalist Li Bingjie of China clocked an Asian record of 8:13.31. Australian swimmer Ariarne Titmus was a close third, finishing in 8:13.59.

Celebrating her incredible achievements at this year’s World Championships, Ledecky showed her gratitude on Instagram.

“800 free 6-peat complete. Always fun to end the meet with my favorite event. Thankful for everyone’s support along the way this year @usaswimming @gatorsswimdv @tyrsport and thank you Japan for putting on a fabulous World Championships. Congrats to all my teammates and competitors on a lot of fast swimming," Katie Ledecky wrote.

“Looking forward to cheering on Team USA 🇺🇸 today and then getting some R&R with family and friends,” she added.

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Katie Ledecky’s performance at the 2023 World Aquatics Championship

Katie Ledecky at Fukuoka 2023 World Aquatics Championships: Swimming - Day 6

Ledecky participated in four events at the 2023 World Aquatics Championships - 400m freestyle,1500m freestyle, 4x200m freestyle relay, and 800m freestyle.

In the 400m freestyle event, billed as the “race of the century”, Katie Ledecky finished second in 3:58.73. Australian swimmer Ariarne Titmus took gold in 3:55.38.

The 1500m event, a category usually dominated by Ledecky, saw the 26-year-old emerge victorious again in 15:26.27, the third quickest time of her career. It also marked her 20th career long-course World Championships gold medal.

In the 4x200m freestyle relay, team USA, which consisted of Katie Ledecky, Erin Gemmell, Bella Sims, and Alex Shackell, took home silver with a time of 7:41.38. Team Australia achieved the first position in 7:37.50.

Ledecky was the star of the 800m freestyle event. The swimmer won the gold medal at her favorite event in 8:08.87.