Katie Ledecky almost always wins when she jumps in a pool, but she’s usually not one to make waves.
To no one’s surprise, she won four races at the U.S. Olympic swimming trials this past weekend. To some people’s surprise, she did it wearing caps she apparently borrowed from Albert the Alligator.
Some were blue and some were black. On the sides they had the UF alligator logo, or the scripted “Gators.”
On the scale of Olympic controversies, this one barely makes a ripple. But it wasn’t a pleasing sight to some observers.
““I do not like seeing Ledecky in this Florida swim cap. What is that about anyway?” someone posted on X.
What it’s about is if Ledecky strikes more gold in Paris next month, it can be traced to the waters around Gainesville. The 50-meter pools inside and outside the O’Connell Center, to be exact.
That’s where Ledecky has been training the past three years. She was also a volunteer assistant for UF’s swim team.
Unless the Olympics are in the air, swimmers are pretty anonymous. You could have been stuck in Archer Road traffic next to Ledecky and not even realized it.
Of course, Ledecky isn’t just another swimmer. At last count, she has seven Olympic gold medals, 21 world championship medals and one Presidential Medal of Freedom.
Joe Biden awarded Ledecky the highest award a civilian can get last month. Tim Tebow doesn’t even have one of those.
You can see why a school or city or state would like to claim Ledecky as their own. Maryland can claim her as a native. She won eight NCAA titles in two years at Stanford before turning pro.
That explains the indigestion around Palo Alto last week. Gator fans, imagine if Tebow got another sports itch and showed up for an NHL tryout wearing a Stanford jersey?
Cardinal faithful should not take it personally. Ledecky loves your school, but she loves winning even more.
After winning two gold and two silver medals at the Tokyo Olympics, Ledecky felt she needed a change. She’d gotten to know UF swim coach Anthony Nesty, who will be the head coach of this year’s U.S. men’s team.
Nesty’s program is an assembly line of Olympic talent. Think Ryan Lochte, Caeleb Dressel, Bobby Finke and Kieran Smith.
No offense against women, but Ledecky knew training with and against guys like that would have benefits. She also knew Nesty would push her to improve.
In her autobiography released last week, Ledecky recalled Nesty’s “Welcome to Gainesville” speech.
“I know you’re Katie Ledecky,” he said. “But as good as you are, you’re not perfect.”
Besides training about 45 miles a week in the pool, Nesty prescribed more work in the weight room. He had Ledecky run the steps at Ben Hill Griffin Stadium. He said her world-beating stroke was choppy and inefficient.
Ledecky has won gold medals in the 200-, 400-, 800- and 1,500-meter freestyle. It’s a mental drain just keeping track of the varying challenges each race presents.
“Coach Nesty has been great about helping me manage those ups and downs and always staying focused on the next event, the next step I want to take,” Ledecky said.
She’s 27 now. It’s been 12 years since Ledecky won her first gold medal at the London Olympics, but she won everything from the 200 to the 1,500 at the Olympic trials in Indianapolis.
She’ll be going for her fourth-straight gold medal in the 800 in Paris. Michael Phelps is the only swimmer to ever win four straight golds in the same event.
Four straight would be amazing, but Ledecky might not stop there. She plans to keep going through the 2028 Olympics in Los Angeles.
By then, she’ll be swimming against people half her age. Not to worry.
“Age is just a number, kid,” Biden told her at the Presidential Medal of Freedom ceremony. “I can’t wait to welcome you back to the White House with more medals from Team USA.
“You’re the best. The finest woman swimmer in American history.”
Ledecky doesn’t just belong to the U.S., she belongs to the ages. But check out Ledecky’s swimming caps.
They are proof that a special part of her will always belong to Gainesville.
David Whitley is The Gainesville Sun’s sports columnist. Contact him at dwhitley@gannett.com. Follow him on X @DavidEWhitley
This article originally appeared on The Gainesville Sun: Ledecky’s latest quest for gold can be traced to Florida waters
