Katie Ledecky, Summer McIntosh avoid showdown, earn Pro Series wins in 1500m and 200m freestyle

Katie Ledecky has fans waiting for the next heavyweight showdown between the nine-time Olympic gold medalist and Canadian star Summer McIntosh.

Ledecky was seeded in the 200 freestyle at the Westmont Pro Swim Series against McIntosh, who opted for the longer 1,500 freestyle event.

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Although there was no further competition between the best players in the world, Ledecky and McIntosh both performed well on Friday night, setting the fastest times in the world this year in their respective events.

Ledecky took first place and dominated the pool in the 1,500-meter freestyle, finishing with a time of 16 minutes, 40.86 seconds, 41.66 seconds faster than the second-place finisher. This year her swimming ranks among the top ten in the world again. Ledecky has taken over the top spot in the Austin Pro Swim Series. Her swim time on January 14 was the second fastest in history, behind only the world record she set in 2018.

In the subsequent competition, McIntosh broke the world’s fastest time of 2.82 seconds and won the 200m freestyle championship in an astonishing time of 1 minute 53.80 seconds. The previous record was set in January by American Claire Weinstein, who won bronze at last summer’s world championships. McIntosh is the fifth-fastest runner in the history of the event, with her best time of 1 minute, 53.65 seconds set in 2023.

Ledecky defeated McIntosh in the 800 freestyle on Wednesday night in their only head-to-head meeting this week. They set the world’s first and third fastest times in this year’s event, 8:08.57 and 8:10.45 respectively.

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Ledecky’s time was the 13th fastest in history. She has won 800-meter freestyle gold at the past four Olympics and won her seventh consecutive 800-meter freestyle gold at last summer’s world championships, becoming the first swimmer to win seven world titles in one event.

Last night, McIntosh won the 200m butterfly in 2:04.72. The nineteen-year-old clocked under two minutes and five seconds for the tenth time in her career, three times more than any other woman in history. She will compete in Saturday’s 200 IM and attempt a three-on-three at Westmont.