Katie Ledecky obliterated the field and her own world record in winning the 800m freestyle at the Rio Olympics on Friday, uniting the 200m, 400m and 800m titles for the first time since 1968.
The 19-year-old American, who also won the 4x200m relay for four golds overall, touched in 8min 04.79sec, beating the previous record of 8:06.68 she set in Austin, Texas, on January 17.It was her 13th world record since her shock 800m freestyle win in London four years ago, and the culmination of the plan she and coach Bruce Gemmell had worked for ever since that breakout performance.
