Singapore, July 29 (AP) – Katie Ledecky leads the charge for the United States on Tuesday at the swimming world championships, with the team anticipated to win gold in four of the five finals on Day 3.
The Americans have captured one gold in the initial two days of the competition, hampered somewhat by an outbreak of "acute gastroenteritis" traced back to their training camp in Thailand. Fortunately, the symptoms are waning, and the results are expected to shine in Singapore.
Ledecky is set to compete in the 1,500-meter freestyle, a race where she is nearly unstoppable. She boasts the world record with a time of 15 minutes, 20.48 seconds and recorded the second-fastest time ever earlier this year at 15:24.51.
As the most decorated female swimmer in history, Ledecky holds 14 Olympic medals and 27 from world championships, tallying up to 41, with 30 of those being gold.
But there’s more to Team USA than just Ledecky.
Luke Hobson enters with the fastest qualifying time for the 200 freestyle. He secured a bronze medal last year in Paris, amidst a competitive field including Romania's Paris Olympic champion David Popovici.
China’s Pan Zhanle, who set a world record in Paris last year in the 100, didn’t qualify for the 200, placing 22nd, trailing almost three seconds behind the leaders.
Another American swimmer, Regan Smith, will meet Kaylee McKeown of Australia in one of the sport's top rivalries. Smith currently holds the world record of 57.13 seconds. However, McKeown clinched the gold in Paris, relegating Smith to a silver finish.
The fourth shot at gold comes with Kate Douglass in the 100 breaststroke. Douglass, who won gold in the 200 in Paris, now aims for victory in the shorter race. Lilly King, the world record holder with 1:04.13, did not qualify, while Italy’s Anita Bottazzo and China’s Tang Qianting are also contenders.
The fifth final features the men’s 100 backstroke, anticipated to be a fast and closely contested race. Hubert Kós of Hungary, who trains at the University of Texas at Austin, is the top qualifier.
Summer McIntosh, a remarkable 18-year-old Canadian swimmer, is targeting five individual golds in Singapore. She claimed victory in the 200-meter individual medley on Monday after winning the 400 freestyle title on Sunday. However, she will not be vying for gold on Day 3. (AP)
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