Katie Ledecky wins 1500m freestyle, eighth Olympic gold medal

NANTERRE, France -- On a night when Léon Marchand was attempting an audacious double, Katie Ledecky proved again she's a sure bet in swimming's longest event.

Ledecky romped to the eighth Olympic gold medal of her brilliant career and 12th medal overall with a runaway victory in the 1,500-meter freestyle Wednesday at the Paris Games.

Ledecky, 27, tied fellow Americans Dara Torres, Natalie Coughlin and Jenny Thompson for the most medals ever by a female swimmer.

Ledecky led right from the start and steadily pulled away, touching in an Olympic-record 15 minutes, 30.02 seconds in an event that joined the women's program at the Tokyo Games in 2021.

This was similar to the race three years ago: Ledecky far in front and everyone else racing for a silver.

France's Anastasiia Kirpichinikova finished nearly a half-lap behind but thrilled the home fans by claiming the silver in 15:40.35.

The bronze went to Germany's Isabel Gose at 15:41.16.

After starting the Paris Games with a bronze in the 400m freestyle, this result looked more familiar for Ledecky.

She was clearly thrilled to be on top again, splashing the water and pumping her fist several times walking across the deck -- a rare show of emotion for a stoic athlete who performs with machine-like efficiency.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.