IRVINE, Calif. (AP) 鈥� Lani Pallister of Australia stunned Katie Ledecky with her first international loss in the 800-meter freestyle at the Pan Pacific Championships on Saturday night.
Pallister was under world-record pace for much of the race and touched in 8 minutes, 6.10 seconds to erase Ledecky’s championship record from 2018.
Ledecky took silver in 8:07.26. She is the four-time Olympic champion in her signature event. The American’s lone previous defeat in an 800 free final since 2010 came in a small domestic meet in February 2024 against Summer McIntosh of Canada.
鈥淜atie’s such a dominant force,鈥� a breathless Pallister said.
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