U.S. Olympic Trials: Katie Ledecky Caps Double by Cruising in 1,500 Free

Katie Ledecky; Photo Courtesy: Peter H. Bick

U.S. Olympic Trials: Katie Ledecky Caps Double by Cruising in 1500 Free

Tuesday was the morning female distance swimmers had dreamt of, yet it was still a double that most would dread.

For the first time in history, Olympic spots in the women’s 1,500 freestyle were up for grabs, a long overdue equalizing of the men’s and women’s distances. But the new event on the block created a crowded morning for many of the distance swimmers unaccustomed to having to make such a choice.

A new event led to the same story as it pertains to Katie Ledecky: A morning after punching her ticket to Tokyo in the 400 free, she was the quickest finisher in the 1,500, with a time of 15:43.10.

It piggybacked a 1:57.58 for the second seed in the 200 free prelims. Ledecky dominated the final heat, winning it by more than 13 seconds. Second was Erica Sullivan in 15:56.24.

In the next-to-last heat, Ashley Twichell and Ally McHugh jousted the whole way. Twichell pulled away to take the third seed in 16:03.39, .97 ahead of McHugh.

Also in the final are two big time droppers. Haley Anderson, like Twichell an open-water Olympian, dropped nearly seven seconds from her seed time to be the fifth seed in 16:05.05. An even more impressive drop came courtesy of 15-year-old Katie Grimes, who trimmed 13 seconds to take sixth in 16:07.33.

Sierra Schmidt (16:07.44) and Kensey McMahon (a distant 16:16.09) round out the final.

Absent from the race was Leah Smith, who opted for the 200 free, in which she is the top seed. Smith has swum fast but run into bad luck by finishing fourth in the 400 individual medley and third in the 400 free. She’s gone a long way toward to stating her claim for a relay spot in the 800 free relay, though.

1500 free finalists

Katie Ledecky, 15:43.10
Erica Sullivan, 15:56.24
Ashley Twichell, 16:03.39
Ally McHugh, 16:04.36
Haley Anderson 16:05.05
Katie Grimes, 16:07.33
Sierra Schmidt, 16:07.44
Kensey McMahon, 16:16.09

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