Katie Ledecky Wins 3rd Gold Medal With Dominating Relay Swim

RIO DE JANEIRO— Katie Ledecky was the fastest swimmer in the pool, and she brought her American teammates along for the ride.The 19-year-old turned in another overpowering performance to carry the United States to victory in the 4x200-meter freestyle...

(FromL) USA's Katie Ledecky, USA's Madeline "Maya" Dirado, USA's Leah Smith and USA's Allison Schmitt pose with their national flag after they won the Women's 4x200m Freestyle Relay Final during the swimming event at the Rio 2016 Olympic Games at the Olympic Aquatics Stadium in Rio de Janeiro on August 10, 2016. ODD ANDERSEN/AFP/Getty Images

RIO DE JANEIRO—Katie Ledecky was the fastest swimmer in the pool, and she brought her American teammates along for the ride.

The 19-year-old turned in another overpowering performance to carry the United States to victory in the 4x200-meter freestyle relay, capturing her third gold and fourth medal overall at the Rio Olympics.

The U.S. trailed through the first three legs of the race, as Sweden, China and then Australia swapped the top spot.

Then, it was Ledecky’s turn on the anchor leg.

She blew everyone away.

Ledecky turned in a split of 1 minute, 53.74 seconds, which was nearly 2.5 seconds faster than her next-fastest teammate, Allison Schmitt in 1:56.21.

Only one other swimmer in the race, Australia’s Emma McKeon, got within a second of Ledecky’s four-lap time.

“I was prepared for any circumstance, whether we were ahead of behind,” Ledecky said.

United States' Katie Ledecky (L) and Australia's Tamsin Cook during the swimming competitions at the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio de Janeiro on Aug. 11, 2016. AP Photo/David J. Phillip