Katie Ledecky
Awards & Honours
17
Awards Won
4
Honours
2
Covers
6
Records
The numbers are the argument. Nine Olympic golds and 14 medals overall make Ledecky the most decorated American woman in Olympic history. Her 18 individual long-course world titles are the most by any swimmer, male or female, and her seven world titles in the 800m freestyle are a first in the sport's history. She has broken 17 world records and set 37 American records.She is a five-time Swimming World Female World Swimmer of the Year, which no one else has matched. The Presidential Medal of Freedom came in 2024, and Yale handed her an honorary doctorate in 2026. What sets her apart is longevity: she has been the standard in distance freestyle since she was 15, and she is still racing for a fifth Olympics in 2028.
Awards
Honours & Distinctions
Presidential Medal of Freedom
The nation's highest civilian honour, awarded for her contributions to sport and public life
Honorary Doctor of Humane Letters
Awarded alongside a Battell lecture on career goals and women's sports
Swimming World Female World Swimmer of the Year
Won a record five times across her career
AP Female Athlete of the Year
Voted by AP member editors as the top female athlete of the year
Magazine Covers
TIME
2016
Olympic preview cover
Sports Illustrated
2016
Olympic issue
Records & Feats
Most individual world championship golds by any swimmer
18 individual long-course world titles, more than any male or female swimmer in history
First swimmer to win seven world titles in the same event
Won the 800m freestyle at the World Championships for the seventh time in 2025
Most decorated American woman in Olympic history
14 Olympic medals, including nine golds, the most by any American woman
First American woman to win an individual Olympic event at three straight Games
Won the 800m freestyle in 2012, 2016 and 2020
17 world records broken
Holds long-course world records in the 800m and 1500m freestyle and the short-course 1500m
Youngest American female swimmer to win Olympic gold since 1992
Won the 800m freestyle in London at age 15