Olympic Swimmer Katie Ledecky 'Definitely' Doesn't Pee in the Pool but Jokes 'I Can't Speak for Other People'
"I try not to think about this," the eight-time gold medalist told comedian Leslie Jones when pressed about it
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Katie Ledecky during the 2024 Olympic swimming team trialsKatie Ledecky has done a lot of notable things in the pool over here career. But there's one thing the greatest female swimmer of all time has never done.
During a sit-down conversation with Olympic superfan and comedian Leslie Jones at the 2024 Summer Olympics, the 8-time gold medalist opened up about her career, telling the Saturday Night Live alumna that her love for swimming runs deep.
"To me, I could do this sport without the competitions," Ledecky, 27, said. "I love it that much. I just love it when I can spend most of my day at the pool."
Related: Golden Again! Katie Ledecky Wins 1500-Meter Freestyle in Olympic-Record Time, Her 8th Gold
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Katie LedeckyRelated: Katie Ledecky Wins Her 11th Olympic Medal, Is Bronze Medalist in Women's 400-Meter Freestyle
The revelation prompted Jones, 56, to ask Ledecky a bold question. "You know, I got to ask this because I’m looking at this pool and I see how long the lanes are ... How do you not pee in the pool?" she wondered.
Laughing, Ledecky insisted, "I definitely don’t."
"So no one pees in the pool?" Jones pressed on. "'Cause I’m like, ‘If you pee in my pool, you’ll pee in my life and I can’t have that.’ "
"I can’t speak for other people. I definitely cannot speak for other people." Ledecky said. "I try not to think about this."
Jones has been a vocal supporter of Ledecky's, even meeting her mother at the airport last Olympics. In her conversation with the athlete, Ledecky got candid about her journey to the Paris Games.
"I started swimming when I was 6 years old. I joined a summer league swim team," the Washington, DC native said. "That next year, 2004, there was the Olympics in Athens; that’s the first Olympics I really clearly remember watching the swimming. And I just thought you had to be some superhero."
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"It was so far-fetched that I was never even dreaming I could get to that level," she noted.
Of course, that prompted Jones to tell Ledecky she is a superhero — something Ledecky couldn't accept. "I don’t see myself as that," she said.
"That’s okay, superheroes never do," said Jones. "That’s what makes them superheroes."
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Katie Ledecky poses with her 8th gold medal at the Paris Olympics after the women's 1,500-meter freestyle finalThe PEOPLE Puzzler crossword is here! How quickly can you solve it? Play now!
On Wednesday, July 31, Ledecky won gold yet again in the 1500-meter freestyle, tying her for the most gold medals in Olympic history by a female swimmer.
Ledecky swam a 15:30.02, besting her time of 15:35.35 from the 2020 Tokyo Games and setting an Olympic record in the process.
"It's never easy to win a gold medal," Ledecky told reporters, including PEOPLE, after the medal ceremony. "So I'm just trying to soak in every moment of it."
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