On the heels of a record-breaking performance at the 2024 Paris Olympics , Katie Ledecky already has her sights set on the L.A. Games in 2028.
Back in August, Ledecky further etched her name in the history books by winning her ninth Olympic gold medal - growing her historic total to 14. After finishing first in the 800-meter freestyle for the fourth-consecutive time, the 27-year-old became the most decorated American female Olympian, additionally tying Russian gymnast Larisa Latynina for the most gold medals won by a woman in the history of the Olympics.
Despite already solidifying herself as one of the greatest female swimmers of all time, Ledecky feels as though she still has more to accomplish in the sport. While speaking at a Raising Cane’s employee appreciation conference that Mirror U.S. Sports attended, the 27-year-old announced that she actively plans on competing at the Los Angeles Olympics in four years.
“Right now, the answer is yes,” she said, prompting a thunderous round of applause from the crowd of over 3,000 Raising Cane’s leaders and their significant others. “I took a few weeks off after Paris but I am starting to get back in the pool.
“I’m traveling quite a bit right now but I’m swimming when I can and I’m starting to get my mind into swimming mode and starting to set my goals for the next four years. I have to take it year by year but the opportunity to compete on home soil is something that not every athlete gets to get.”
After spending a short period of time away from the pool following the Paris Games, Ledecky admitted that she would have to knock off some rust upon jumping back into training. “I only took a few weeks off after this past Olympics because our sport really demands that,” the Team USA star added. “You lose your feel for the water, you gotta get it back. I’m on that ground zero right now.
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“Really it’s just trying to show up every day, be consistent. But I think the biggest thing is I love it. I love the training, I love being with my teammates, I love the feeling of a hard practice.
“I really do love the journey, and the journey is just not something that I’m willing to put aside yet. I love the training almost more than the racing, so that’s why I’m gonna keep training, I’m gonna keep racing and we’ll see how far it takes me.”
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In order to continue to be one of the best in her sport, Ledecky follows a strict workout regimen. “I swim usually about 10 times a week, so most days twice a day for two hours each time and then I do weights - or swimmers call it dry land training - five days a week for an hour, hour and a half,” she divulged.
“So I probably am training about 25 hours a week. 25-30. I consider training much longer than that because I think the sleep, the nutrition, what you’re doing out of the pool, all of those things especially now in my career are more important.”
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