For most swimmers, attending the world championships is only something they can dream of. For world record holder Ariarne Titmus, there are bigger fish to fry. Instead of showing down against former champion Katie Ledecky, she’ll be sleeping, waiting for the Commonwealth Games to commence in England.
From a young age, Titmus loved swimming, and even moved from Tasmania to Brisbane to gain access to better coaching and competition. When she moved in 2015 at the age of 14, she already had her eyes set on world champion Ledecky. At the time, she was nowhere near Ledecky’s speed. She was eight seconds off Ledecky’s 200 meter time. Slowly, but surely, she was improving year by year, and amazingly, she dethroned Ledecky in 2019.
Titmus became Ledecky’s number one rival in the 2019 world championships, where Titmus upset 15-time world champion Ledecky in the 400-meter freestyle event. Titmus would later cement her position as the best female mid-distance swimmer, beating Ledecky in the 200-meter and 400-meter events at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics. The swimmers have been clear rivals ever since.
So why doesn’t Titmus want to prove herself again at this year’s world championships? She says, “I really don’t care… I swim because I love it and I want to perform on the biggest stage, which for me is the Olympic Games.” Titmus also heavily respects Ledecky as a rival, mentioning that Ledecky changed the world of female swimming. Either way, this decision means that we might have to wait until the 2024 Olympics for another faceoff.
Titmus doesn’t feel the need to compete. In her own words, “I don’t focus too much on other people. I just worry about myself.”
From a young age, Titmus loved swimming, and even moved from Tasmania to Brisbane to gain access to better coaching and competition. When she moved in 2015 at the age of 14, she already had her eyes set on world champion Ledecky. At the time, she was nowhere near Ledecky’s speed. She was eight seconds off Ledecky’s 200 meter time. Slowly, but surely, she was improving year by year, and amazingly, she dethroned Ledecky in 2019.
Titmus became Ledecky’s number one rival in the 2019 world championships, where Titmus upset 15-time world champion Ledecky in the 400-meter freestyle event. Titmus would later cement her position as the best female mid-distance swimmer, beating Ledecky in the 200-meter and 400-meter events at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics. The swimmers have been clear rivals ever since.
So why doesn’t Titmus want to prove herself again at this year’s world championships? She says, “I really don’t care… I swim because I love it and I want to perform on the biggest stage, which for me is the Olympic Games.” Titmus also heavily respects Ledecky as a rival, mentioning that Ledecky changed the world of female swimming. Either way, this decision means that we might have to wait until the 2024 Olympics for another faceoff.
Titmus doesn’t feel the need to compete. In her own words, “I don’t focus too much on other people. I just worry about myself.”
