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‘An Honor’ – Katie Ledecky Embracing New Rivalry With Ariarne Titmus Ahead of Tokyo Olympics 2021

Published 07/13/2021, 7:13 AM EDT

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USA Today via Reuters

Katie Ledecky is a beast of an athlete. There has been no other swimmer who has been so dominant in recent years, and Ledecky is expected to clinch gold in all of her individual events at the Tokyo Olympics 2021. However, there are other athletes who pose a threat to Ledecky’s supremacy, and Australia’s Ariarne Titmus is one of them. 

Ariarne Titmus might just be 20-years-old, but she is ready to take the world by storm. Titmus recorded blistering speeds at the Australian Olympic trials in June, which came out as an indirect message to Katie Ledecky. 

Titmus came incredibly close to breaking the 200m freestyle world record. She clocked a 1:53.09 and missed out on the WR by just 0.11 seconds. On the other hand, Ledecky went 1:55.11 in the 200m freestyle during the U.S. Olympic trials. 

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Katie Ledecky eager to race with Ariarne Titmus at Tokyo Olympics 2021

Ariarne Titmus is a sensation. She broke her personal records in the 200, 400, and 800 free at the Australian Olympic trials this year. While Ledecky did not achieve the same, the 24-year-old is still the favorite to clinch gold in the aforementioned events. 

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“She swam really, really fast a couple of weeks ago,” Ledecky said of Titmus. “And honestly, it was so awesome. We’ll see. I think she’s really shown that she’s really fast at the International meets as well. And so I’m sure she’s going to be great in Tokyo.”

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“She’s such a great competitor and somebody that I love racing. I think we bring the best out of each other. I’m sure she’s going to be fast and so I’m sure she thinks the same of me. So I think it’s great. It’s always great to see the sport continued To move forward, and she’s definitely doing that for our sport. And it’s an honor to be able to race against somebody like her,” Ledecky added. 

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Swimming fans are in for a treat at the Tokyo Olympics 2021. Katie Ledecky will swim in the 200 free, 400 free, and 800 free, as will Ariarne Titmus. Ledecky is expected to triumph over Titmus, but the Australian has a solid chance of denying Ledecky a gold medal in at least one of the three events. 

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Written by:

Arjun Athreya

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Arjun Athreya is a senior writer at Essentially Sports and has been contributing since early 2020. Having developed an avid interest in sports at an early age, he pursued a Journalism degree and graduated from Madras Christian College. Arjun manages the Golf division and its content, and primarily covers news pertaining to the NBA as well.
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