"I was known for being the one that beat Katie Ledecky, and I wasn't known for being world champion" - Ariarne Titmus

Ariarne Titmus recently reflected on how her identity became defined by defeating Katie Ledecky. While Ledecky is celebrated as the most decorated female swimmer in World Championships history with 21 golds, the Aussie has also left her impression in the competition, earning nine medals, including four golds, two silvers, and three bronzes.

Ledecky had never lost a major international 400m freestyle event until Ariane Titmus defeated her at the 2019 World Championships in Gwangju, Korea. With this victory, Titmus ended the American's pursuit of a fourth consecutive 400m title at the World Championships in the event. Since then, the Australian swimmer has continued her dominance in the discipline.

With both Ledecky (800m and 1500m) and Titmus (200m and 400m) being world record holders in their freestyle long-course swimming, their rivalry is one of the biggest in the sport, with both having faced one another on numerous occasions.

However, in her recent appearance on the "Inherited" podcast hosted by Ruby Hall, she reflected on how her identity became overshadowed after defeating the American swimmer as she was primarily recognized as the athlete who beat Ledecky.

“I was known for being the one that beat Katie, and I wasn't known for being world champion. I was known for being the woman that beat Katie for the first time," Titmus said.

Moreover, the Aussie noted that she didn’t actively address the public regarding this, implying that she let the narrative of being known for defeating Katie overshadow her other accomplishments.

“And I think that was a moment where I probably let it rule who I was, ” she also mentioned in the podcast.

A look into Katie Ledecky and Ariarne Titmus’ head-to-head in individual events at Paris Olympics

Katie Ledecky (C), Ariarne Titmus (R) and Paige Madden (L) after the Women's 800m Freestyle Final at Paris Olympics (Image Source: Getty)

Katie Ledecky and Ariarne Titmus faced each other twice in individual finals at the 2024 Paris Olympics. They first encountered in the 400m freestyle finals on July 27, 2024. In the discipline, Titmus claimed the gold medal with a sensational 3:57.49 to defend her title successfully, finishing ahead of Ledecky, who won the bronze with a 4:00.86.

In their second encounter in the 800m freestyle, Katie Ledecky, however, claimed her revenge over Titmus, as the world record holder in the event secured the gold medal with an impressive time of 8:11.04.

Despite Titmus smashing the Oceania record with a 8:12.29, she had to settle for the silver medal in the event.