{"id":588710,"date":"2024-06-19T15:00:16","date_gmt":"2024-06-19T22:00:16","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.swimmingworldmagazine.com\/news\/?p=588710"},"modified":"2024-06-19T16:17:53","modified_gmt":"2024-06-19T23:17:53","slug":"from-inspiration-to-teammate-erin-gemmell-and-katie-ledecky-add-olympic-chapter-to-bond","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.swimmingworldmagazine.com\/news\/from-inspiration-to-teammate-erin-gemmell-and-katie-ledecky-add-olympic-chapter-to-bond\/","title":{"rendered":"From Inspiration to Teammate, Erin Gemmell and Katie Ledecky Add Olympic Chapter to Bond"},"content":{"rendered":"

From Inspiration to Teammate, Erin Gemmell and Katie Ledecky Add Olympic Chapter to Bond<\/strong><\/p>\n

The pictures went viral for the first time last summer, when the tenor of their relationship irrevocably changed. There was Erin Gemmell,<\/strong> 7 years old, dressed for Halloween like Katie Ledecky<\/strong>, still only 16 but already a gold medalist from the London Olympics.<\/p>\n

The dynamic between them has shifted from idol and fan to something closer to mentor and mentee. But it\u2019s also grown to include comfort for Gemmell, perhaps more than you\u2019d expected when competing against your hero, when she\u2019s in the pool alongside Ledecky.<\/p>\n

\u201cI’ve said to my dad a couple times over the course of this meet and over the years that I really enjoy swimming next to Katie in an individual 200 free,\u201d Gemmell said this week. \u201cI’m comfortable there. I know what she’s going to do, and I know what I’m going to do. Being on a relay with her, it just makes it feel a lot less daunting.\u201d<\/p>\n

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The swimmers who hail from the same high school are also getting used to being on relays together. For the second straight summer, they\u2019ll chase gold with the U.S. in a major international meet, in the 800 free relay at the Paris Olympics.<\/p>\n
Ledecky won the 200 free at U.S. Olympic Trials this week<\/a>, going 1:55.22. Fourth was Gemmell in 1:56.75. While Ledecky expects to drop the individual event for Paris<\/a>, she and Gemmell will swim in the same relay, possibly with one another in the final.<\/p>\n
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A post shared by Katie Ledecky (@katieledecky)<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/blockquote>\n