Swim queen Katie Ledecky dethroned by Summer McIntosh in 13-year first

Ledecky is the undoubted queen of middle and long distance swimming, a 16-time world champion and seven-time Olympic gold medallist, having dominated in the 400m, 800m and 1500m events for more than a decade. She was also a 200m champion earlier in her career.

But after Aussie Ariarne Titmus stole Ledecky’s 400m crown at the 2021 Toyko Olympics, it appeared it was just a matter of time before the American’s incredible dominance was challenged in the other events.

And finally it’s happened with 17-year-old wunderkind McIntosh pulling off an incredible swim to end Ledecky’s reign.

While not the biggest pressure cooker event at the 2024 Southern Zone South Sectional Championships, McIntosh became the second fastest female 800m swimmer of all-time,…