Swimmer Katie Ledecky breaks her own world record

Risingbd Desk: Eighteen-year-old American swimmer Katie Ledecky broke her own world record in the 1,500-meter freestyle preliminaries at the World Swimming Championships in Kazan, Russia on Monday.

The recent high school graduate without a driver’s license clocked 15:27.71 to break her record from 2014 by .65 of a second.

Right after Ledecky finished, she gave a little Michael Jordan shrug as if she didn`t even realize what she had just accomplished.

"My coach told me to swim the first 900m easy, build over the next 300, then the final 300 was my choice and to be honest, it felt pretty easy," she said after the race. "I wasn`t kicking much and I think breaking the world record is testament to the hard work I have put in and the shape I am in right now. I am pretty shocked that I was able to do that.

"I was barely even focusing on this morning`s swim. I was just so relaxed," she added.

Ledecky’s time was 26.52 seconds faster than anyone else in the 1500m free prelims, which is not surprising. She is an overwhelming favorite to repeat as World champion in the event Tuesday night, even though she also swims the 200m free semifinals about 25 minutes after the 1500m final.

She is scheduled for four individual events at Worlds and could become the first woman to win four individual titles at a single Worlds. Ledecky started with a 400m freestyle gold Sunday.

The Bethesda, Maryland, native burst onto the scene as a 15-year-old prodigy at the 2012 London Olympics, winning gold in the 800m freestyle. She has since set eight individual world records across three events, becoming one of the most dominant athletes in the sport at age 18.

Agencies

risingbd/DHAKA/Aug 4, 2015/Augustin Sujan