Katie Ledecky teases Bobby Finke over his unique paddles as American swimmer indulges in fun pickleball session

Katie Ledecky was recently seen teasing Bobby Finke as the latter tried his hand at a new sport. This comes just a few months after their successful Olympic campaigns at the French capital.

Both Ledecky and Finke clinched Olympic gold medals in Paris and haven't participated in any other events since then. The 25-year-old male swimmer recently tried his hand at pickleball during this time away from the pool.

Finke shared a few glimpses of his pickleball session in St. Petersburg, Florida, on Instagram with his new pickleball paddles. He wrote in the caption:

"Different kind of paddles this morning"

Katie Ledecky, who was also Finke's training partner before the Paris Olympics, reacted to the post. She commented tongue-in-cheek:

"Wait you use paddles?"

Finke replied to the comment:

"only the Alpha MK-1 Elite Carbon 14mm Paddle in dual wielding format."

Screenshot of Finke and Ledecky's conversation on Instagram (Image via: Bobby Finke Instagram)

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Katie Ledecky opened up about Bobby Finke's contribution to her training sessions before the 2024 Paris Olympics

Ledecky with Lydia Jacoby and Bobby Finke during the 2023 Golden Goggles Red carpet award event (Image via: Getty Images)

Katie Ledecky gave special credit to Bobby Finke and Kieran Smith for helping her in training sessions before the Paris quadrennial Games. She shared her thoughts after the 400m freestyle finals at the Paris Olympics where she clinched the bronze medal after clocking 4:00:86.

After Ledecky clinched the bronze medal in the event, she stated that she loved to spend time with the training group which included Finke and Smith. She also mentioned that these training sessions, along with the help of her coaches, played a decisive role in her performance. Ledecky said (via Swimswam):

"It’s just a really special group and it’s why I love the sport so much because I get to spend everyday with people Bobby (Finke) and Kieran (Smith) and my coaches and everyone that believes in me and pushes me, and I think just the confidence I was able to have today is a testament to them.”

Katie Ledecky, Bobby Finke, and Kieran Smith are coached by Anthony Nesty, the current Florida Gators head coach. Finke and Smith are also alumni of the University and have won numerous laurels for the collegiate team at the NCAA level. Ledecky, on the other hand, was roped in as a volunteer coach at the university three years ago.