Pro Series Indianapolis, Day 4 Finals: Katie Ledecky Completes Distance Triple with Title in 800 Freestyle
The biggest meet of the summer for American athletes, the Pan Pacific Championships, is still almost two months away. Yet, there is a vibe that Team USA – especially its female stars – is ready to rock when Pan Pacs are held from August 12-15 at the William Woollett Aquatic Center in Irvine, California. The proof can be found in the performances produced at the TYR Pro Series stop in Indianapolis.
Through the first three days of competition, there have been plenty of elite swims delivered inside the Indiana University Natatorium, headlined by Kate Douglass’ world record in the 50-meter freestyle on Friday night. What will the last night of action bring? There’s plenty of optimism for additional speed, as Katie Ledecky is slated to contest the 800 freestyle, while Van Mathias will chase the American record in the 100 breaststroke. More, Douglass and Anna Moesch could threaten the world record in the 100 freestyle.
Here is an event-by-event recap of Saturday’s action:
Women’s 800 Freestyle
A four-time Olympic champion in the event, Katie Ledecky rolled through the 800 freestyle in 8:12.87, an effort that handed the future Hall of Famer a sweep of the distance events during the meet. Already the winner of the 400 freestyle and 1500 freestyle, Ledecky won the 16-lap event by nearly 12 seconds, with Mila Nikanorov placing second in 8:26.24. Third place went to Kennedi Dobson in 8:26.33.
The world-record holder in 8:04.12, Ledecky was ahead of the field by more than a second after the opening 100 meters and had an advantage of three-plus seconds by the 200-meter mark. As is her trademark, she continued to widen her margin over the next 600 meters. Ledecky is the world leader for 2026, off the 8:08.57 she managed at the Pro Series leg in Westmont, Illinois in March.
Event 33 Women 800 LC Meter Freestyle
==================================================================
World: W 8:04.12 5/3/2025 Katie Ledecky, USA
American: A 8:04.12 5/3/2025 Katie Ledecky, Gator Swim Club
U.S. Open: O 8:04.12 5/3/2025 Katie Ledecky, Gator Swim Club
Pro Swim: M 8:04.12 5/3/2025 Katie Ledecky, Gator Swim Club
Jr World: 8:11.00 6/19/2014 Katie Ledecky, USA
Name Age Team Seed Finals
==================================================================
1 Ledecky, Katie 29 Gator Swim Club- 8:04.12 8:12.87
r:+0.56 28.18 58.80 (30.62)
1:29.75 (30.95) 2:00.81 (31.06)
2:30.77 (29.96) 3:02.99 (32.22)
3:34.34 (31.35) 4:05.73 (31.39)
4:36.83 (31.10) 5:08.11 (31.28)
5:39.34 (31.23) 6:10.78 (31.44)
6:41.83 (31.05) 7:12.87 (31.04)
7:43.50 (30.63) 8:12.87 (29.37)
2 Nikanorov, Mila 20 Ohio State Unive 8:27.61 8:26.24
r:+0.71 29.29 1:00.76 (31.47)
1:32.63 (31.87) 2:04.64 (32.01)
2:36.57 (31.93) 3:08.49 (31.92)
3:40.25 (31.76) 4:12.60 (32.35)
4:44.44 (31.84) 5:16.55 (32.11)
5:48.74 (32.19) 6:20.88 (32.14)
6:52.57 (31.69) 7:24.32 (31.75)
7:55.84 (31.52) 8:26.24 (30.40)
3 Dobson, Kennedi 19 Eastern Express- 8:33.50 8:26.33
r:+0.74 29.03 1:00.63 (31.60)
1:32.76 (32.13) 2:04.86 (32.10)
2:37.12 (32.26) 3:09.19 (32.07)
3:41.39 (32.20) 4:13.30 (31.91)
4:45.38 (32.08) 5:17.37 (31.99)
5:49.43 (32.06) 6:21.48 (32.05)
6:53.22 (31.74) 7:24.96 (31.74)
7:56.37 (31.41) 8:26.33 (29.96)
4 Grimes, Katie 20 Cavalier Aquatic 8:34.15 8:28.96
r:+0.53 28.80 1:00.46 (31.66)
1:32.10 (31.64) 2:04.20 (32.10)
2:36.15 (31.95) 3:08.59 (32.44)
3:40.75 (32.16) 4:12.94 (32.19)
4:45.27 (32.33) 5:17.64 (32.37)
5:49.73 (32.09) 6:22.02 (32.29)
6:54.03 (32.01) 7:26.21 (32.18)
7:57.71 (31.50) 8:28.96 (31.25)
5 Jorgenson, Gena 22 Club Husker-MW 8:33.79 8:32.01
29.61 1:01.50 (31.89)
1:33.62 (32.12) 2:05.89 (32.27)
2:38.21 (32.32) 3:10.47 (32.26)
3:42.53 (32.06) 4:14.85 (32.32)
4:47.13 (32.28) 5:19.14 (32.01)
5:51.31 (32.17) 6:23.57 (32.26)
6:55.86 (32.29) 7:28.12 (32.26)
8:00.41 (32.29) 8:32.01 (31.60)
6 Gormsen, Cavan 21 Long Island Aqua 8:36.63 8:37.18
r:+0.61 29.53 1:01.94 (32.41)
1:34.19 (32.25) 2:06.49 (32.30)
2:38.68 (32.19) 3:11.25 (32.57)
3:43.77 (32.52) 4:16.31 (32.54)
4:48.71 (32.40) 5:21.51 (32.80)
5:54.44 (32.93) 6:26.95 (32.51)
6:59.79 (32.84) 7:32.74 (32.95)
8:05.09 (32.35) 8:37.18 (32.09)
7 Schoeck, Sydney 17 CSP Tideriders-O 8:41.91 8:37.28
r:+0.76 30.07 1:02.74 (32.67)
1:35.26 (32.52) 2:07.72 (32.46)
2:40.36 (32.64) 3:13.00 (32.64)
3:45.60 (32.60) 4:18.10 (32.50)
4:50.62 (32.52) 5:22.85 (32.23)
5:55.11 (32.26) 6:27.59 (32.48)
7:00.23 (32.64) 7:32.92 (32.69)
8:05.34 (32.42) 8:37.28 (31.94)
8 Downey, Paige 17 Gold Medal Swim- 8:42.48 8:41.01
r:+0.68 29.96 1:02.47 (32.51)
1:34.94 (32.47) 2:07.25 (32.31)
2:39.63 (32.38) 3:12.03 (32.40)
3:44.57 (32.54) 4:17.34 (32.77)
4:50.19 (32.85) 5:23.14 (32.95)
5:56.34 (33.20) 6:29.25 (32.91)
7:02.39 (33.14) 7:35.50 (33.11)
8:08.52 (33.02) 8:41.01 (32.49)
Men’s 800 Freestyle
Known for his closing speed, Bobby Finke shifted into another gear over the last lap to defeat the opposition in the 800 freestyle. Finke checked in with a winning time of 7:56.21, his closing split of 26.62 serving as the difference. The 2020 Olympic champion in the event, Finke stayed with the leaders through the firstn 750 meters and then turned to his difference-making talent for the final length.
William Mulgrew, who won the 1500 freestyle earlier in the meet, took second place in 7:56.51, but he couldn’t stay with Finke in the final stretch. Mulgrew split 27.51 for his last 50 meters. Third place went to Max Carlsen, who touched in 7:57.25 for his first trip under eight minutes.
Event 34 Men 800 LC Meter Freestyle
==================================================================
World: W 7:32.12 7/29/2009 Lin Zhang, CHN
American: A 7:38.67 7/26/2023 Bobby Finke, USA
U.S. Open: O 7:40.34 7/1/2023 Bobby Finke, Saint Petersburg
Pro Swim: M 7:40.98 3/5/2026 Samuel Short, Australia
Jr World: 7:43.37 8/13/2022 Lorenzo Galossi, ITA
Name Age Team Seed Finals
==================================================================
1 Finke, Bobby 26 Saint Petersburg 7:38.75 7:56.21
r:+0.64 27.19 57.17 (29.98)
1:27.17 (30.00) 1:57.40 (30.23)
2:27.78 (30.38) 2:58.02 (30.24)
3:28.20 (30.18) 3:58.52 (30.32)
4:28.76 (30.24) 4:59.10 (30.34)
5:29.34 (30.24) 5:59.65 (30.31)
6:29.64 (29.99) 6:59.70 (30.06)
7:29.59 (29.89) 7:56.21 (26.62)
2 Mulgrew, William 19 Shawmut Aquatic- 7:51.99 7:56.51
r:+0.74 27.51 57.38 (29.87)
1:27.57 (30.19) 1:57.85 (30.28)
2:27.80 (29.95) 2:57.87 (30.07)
3:28.07 (30.20) 3:58.38 (30.31)
4:28.74 (30.36) 4:59.33 (30.59)
5:29.71 (30.38) 5:59.86 (30.15)
6:29.79 (29.93) 6:59.59 (29.80)
7:29.00 (29.41) 7:56.51 (27.51)
3 Carlsen, Max 19 NC State Univers 8:02.98 7:57.25
r:+0.71 27.13 56.79 (29.66)
1:26.95 (30.16) 1:57.13 (30.18)
2:27.55 (30.42) 2:57.80 (30.25)
3:28.07 (30.27) 3:58.23 (30.16)
4:28.43 (30.20) 4:58.65 (30.22)
5:29.18 (30.53) 5:59.05 (29.87)
6:29.33 (30.28) 6:59.12 (29.79)
7:28.62 (29.50) 7:57.25 (28.63)
4 Hick, Carson 21 Kentucky Aquatic 7:56.16 7:58.49
r:+0.74 27.42 57.32 (29.90)
1:27.38 (30.06) 1:57.70 (30.32)
2:27.88 (30.18) 2:58.35 (30.47)
3:28.87 (30.52) 3:59.33 (30.46)
4:29.38 (30.05) 4:59.60 (30.22)
5:29.90 (30.30) 6:00.26 (30.36)
6:30.44 (30.18) 7:00.61 (30.17)
7:30.23 (29.62) 7:58.49 (28.26)
5 Crisci, Ellis 17 Tsunami Swim Tea 8:01.18 8:08.43
r:+0.69 27.70 57.53 (29.83)
1:27.93 (30.40) 1:58.26 (30.33)
2:28.71 (30.45) 2:58.98 (30.27)
3:29.77 (30.79) 4:00.32 (30.55)
4:30.96 (30.64) 5:02.03 (31.07)
5:33.16 (31.13) 6:04.56 (31.40)
6:34.67 (30.11) 7:06.02 (31.35)
7:37.11 (31.09) 8:08.43 (31.32)
6 Gemov, Ondrej 27 Czech Swimming F 7:59.27 8:10.21
r:+0.51 27.44 57.26 (29.82)
1:27.73 (30.47) 1:58.28 (30.55)
2:29.06 (30.78) 2:59.75 (30.69)
3:30.83 (31.08) 4:01.85 (31.02)
4:33.07 (31.22) 5:04.07 (31.00)
5:35.21 (31.14) 6:06.22 (31.01)
6:37.35 (31.13) 7:08.67 (31.32)
7:39.79 (31.12) 8:10.21 (30.42)
7 Allen, Trent 17 Carmel Swim Club 8:04.30 8:11.21
r:+0.69 27.45 57.64 (30.19)
1:28.03 (30.39) 1:58.77 (30.74)
2:29.50 (30.73) 3:00.53 (31.03)
3:31.54 (31.01) 4:02.67 (31.13)
4:34.04 (31.37) 5:05.45 (31.41)
5:36.93 (31.48) 6:08.45 (31.52)
6:39.93 (31.48) 7:11.12 (31.19)
7:42.08 (30.96) 8:11.21 (29.13)
8 Sandidge, Levi 22 Kentucky Aquatic 8:02.81 8:12.92
r:+0.68 27.42 57.07 (29.65)
1:27.30 (30.23) 1:57.78 (30.48)
2:28.64 (30.86) 2:59.62 (30.98)
3:30.72 (31.10) 4:01.75 (31.03)
4:33.22 (31.47) 5:04.87 (31.65)
5:36.50 (31.63) 6:07.98 (31.48)
6:39.52 (31.54) 7:11.39 (31.87)
7:42.46 (31.07) 8:12.92 (30.46)
Women’s 50 Butterfly
Kate Douglass raced away from the field for her latest victory of the meet. Having already pocketed titles in the 200 breaststroke and 50 freestyle, the latter in world-record time, Douglass sprinted her lap of fly in 25.39, which was good for a comfortable margin over training partner Claire Curzan (25.76). Douglass was slightly quicker in the morning prelims, where she touched the wall in 25.31.
En route to second place, Curzan notched her second sub-26 performance on the day. She went 25.88 during the morning session and improved that outing at night to take runnerup honors ahead of Phoebe Bacon (26.39).
1 Douglass, Kate 24 New York Athleti 25.31 25.39
r:+0.69
2 Curzan, Claire 21 TAC Titans-NC 25.88 25.76
r:+0.64
3 Bacon, Phoebe 23 Wisconsin Aquati 27.11 26.39
r:+0.64
4 Crush, Charlotte 18 Lakeside Swim Te 26.94 26.40
r:+0.65
5 Larsen, Caroline 20 Univ Louisville- 26.72 26.49
r:+0.67
6 Christianson, Lily 20 NC State Univers 26.90 26.54
r:+0.63
7 Derivaux, Audrey 16 Jersey Wahoos-MA 27.00 26.69
r:+0.73
8 Wasick, Kasia 34 Unattached-NT 27.00 26.82
r:+0.70
Men’s 50 Butterfly
Make it a butterfly sweep for Ilya Kharun, as he secured the title in the 50 fly with a U.S. Open record of 22.73. Kharun followed up prior wins in the 100 fly and 200 fly by defeating Michael Andrew (23.08) in the one-lap distance. Kharun, who is in the process of switching his sporting nationality to the United States from Canada, was not far off his personal best of 22.64, which he delivered during the Mare Nostrum Series.
Following Andrew in third place was Santo Condorelli, who finished in 23.25, while Caeleb Dressel placed fourth with a swim of 23.28.
=== A - Final ===
1 Kharun, Ilya 21 Sun Devil Swimmi 23.20 22.73O
r:+0.62
2 Andrew, Michael 27 MA Swim Academy- 23.37 23.08
r:+0.66
3 Condorelli, Santo 31 FAST Swim Team-C 23.48 23.25
r:+0.63
4 Dressel, Caeleb 29 Sporting Jax Aqu 23.74 23.28
r:+0.64
5 Carter, Dylan 30 Azura Florida Aq 23.39 23.39
r:+0.61
6 Eidam, Ole 23 Univ. Of Michiga 23.55 23.58
r:+0.60
7 Rose, Dare 23 Scarlet Aquatics 23.68 23.60
r:+0.61
8 Abdelghany, Yassin 23 Jaguar Aquatics- 23.86 23.86
r:+0.56
Women’s 100 Breaststroke
South Africa’s Aimee Canny registered a come-from-behind triumph while swimming the fourth-fastest time in the world for 2026. Trailinh Estonia’s Eneli Jefimova at the turn, Canny surged over the last 50 meters and walked away with a victory in 1:05.97, marking her first trip under the 1:06 barrier. Jefimova, who won the 50 breaststroke earlier in the meet, placed second in 1:06.54.
Earlier in the meet, Canny was the third-place finisher in the 200 individual medley and secured runnerup honors in the 200 breaststroke. Skyler Smith was strong on the way to a third-place finish, getting the job done in 1:06.90.
=== A - Final ===
1 Canny, Aimee 22 South Africa-IT 1:07.65 1:05.97
r:+0.74 31.08 1:05.97 (34.89)
2 Jefimova, Eneli 19 Estonia-IT 1:06.94 1:06.54
r:+0.54 30.80 1:06.54 (35.74)
3 Smith, Skyler 22 North Carolina A 1:08.37 1:06.90
r:+0.50 31.59 1:06.90 (35.31)
4 Weber, Emma 22 Cavalier Aquatic 1:07.83 1:08.21
r:+0.70 31.63 1:08.21 (36.58)
5 Moreth, Maddie 18 Valparaiso Swim- 1:09.37 1:09.17
r:+0.52 31.82 1:09.17 (37.35)
6 McQuinn, Ella 19 Texas A & M Univ 1:09.50 1:09.61
r:+0.69 32.32 1:09.61 (37.29)
7 Inagaki, Anna 20 Univ Louisville- 1:10.31 1:09.83
r:+0.59 32.55 1:09.83 (37.28)
8 Corrigan, Brooke 19 Wisconsin Aquati 1:09.88 1:09.91
r:+0.70 32.43 1:09.91 (37.48)
Men’s 100 Breaststroke
Indiana’s Van Mathias continued his fantastic season with his latest American record, this time in the 100 breaststroke. Having lowered his American record in the 50 breaststroke earlier in the meet, Mathias added the 100 breast standard to his collection by clocking a time of 58.01. That effort bettered the 58.14 mark of Michael Andrew, which had stood since 2021.
After going 58.32 during prelims, Mathias appeared poised to break the American record in the final, and that scenario unfolded behind splits of 26.76 and 31.25. In addition to becoming the fastest American in the history of the event, Mathias became the fourth-fastest performer of all-time, trailing only Great Britain’s Adam Peaty (56.88), China’s Qin Haiyang (57.69) and the Netherlands’ Arno Kamminga (57.80).
Placing second to Mathias was Denis Petrashov in 59.39.
=== A - Final ===
1 Mathias, Van 25 Indiana Swim Clu 58.32 58.01A
r:+0.66 26.76 58.01 (31.25)
2 Petrashov, Denis 26 Cardinal Aquatic 1:00.51 59.39
r:+0.67 27.73 59.39 (31.66)
3 Avakov, Alexei 20 Indiana Universi 1:00.32 1:00.16
r:+0.62 27.81 1:00.16 (32.35)
4 Barr, Luke 23 Texas Ford Aquat 1:00.06 1:00.22
r:+0.60 28.06 1:00.22 (32.16)
5 Conklin, Finnley 19 Univ Louisville- 1:00.47 1:00.82
r:+0.65 28.07 1:00.82 (32.75)
6 Bey, Josh 19 Indiana Universi 1:01.69 1:00.99
r:+0.66 28.41 1:00.99 (32.58)
7 Benzing, Brian 24 Towson Universit 1:01.35 1:01.04
r:+0.61 27.97 1:01.04 (33.07)
8 Garner, Jed 21 Towson Universit 1:01.63 1:01.29
r:+0.65 28.80 1:01.29 (32.49)
Women’s 100 Freestyle
The American-record holder in the event, Virginia’s Anna Moesch set a U.S. Open record while winning the 100 freestyle. Moesch was timed in 52.11, which wasn’t far off her American record of 51.94, set last month at the AP Race London. Moesch was out in 24.98 and came home in 27.13 to claim a dominant decision over Torri Huske (53.05) and Kate Douglass (53.09).
Moesch put together a personal best of 24.20 in the 50 freestyle on Friday night, so it was no surprise that she carried that momentum into the 100 freestyle. Finishing fourth was rising teenage star Rylee Erisman, who hit the wall in 53.24.
=== A - Final ===
1 Moesch, Anna 20 Greater Somerset 52.88 52.11O
r:+0.70 24.98 52.11 (27.13)
2 Huske, Torri 23 New York Athleti 54.32 53.05
r:+0.58 25.32 53.05 (27.73)
3 Douglass, Kate 24 New York Athleti 53.77 53.09
r:+0.73 25.39 53.09 (27.70)
4 Erisman, Rylee 17 Laker Swim-FL 53.66 53.24
r:+0.68 25.79 53.24 (27.45)
5 Clark, Liberty 18 Indiana Universi 54.11 53.51
r:+0.52 25.69 53.51 (27.82)
6 Vincent, Cadence 21 Univ Alabama Swi 53.92 54.21
r:+0.51 25.91 54.21 (28.30)
6 Pelaez, Erika 19 NC State Univers 54.49 54.21
r:+0.64 26.33 54.21 (27.88)
8 Gemmell, Erin 21 Longhorn Aquatic 54.24 54.43
r:+0.57 26.13 54.43 (28.30)
Men’s 100 Freestyle
The meet wrapped up with Patrick Sammon defending his top seed and going under the 48-second barrier in the 100 freestyle. Sammon, a former Arizona State star, turned in a time of 47.92, which handed him a decision over Grant House (48.27) and Germany’s Kaii Winkler (48.40).
=== A - Final ===
1 Sammon, Patrick 22 New York Athleti 48.15 47.92
r:+0.58 23.00 47.92 (24.92)
2 House, Grant 27 Sun Devil Swimmi 48.55 48.27
r:+0.64 23.41 48.27 (24.86)
3 Winkler, Kaii 20 NC State Univers 48.36 48.40
r:+0.64 23.05 48.40 (25.35)
4 Lasco, Destin 24 PDR Swimming for 48.89 48.60
r:+0.64 23.38 48.60 (25.22)
5 Williamson, Maximus 19 Lakeside Aquatic 49.02 48.65
r:+0.60 23.35 48.65 (25.30)
6 Dinu, Patrick 21 Princeton Univer 49.05 48.78
r:+0.71 23.14 48.78 (25.64)
7 Fox, Jerry 21 NC State Univers 48.89 49.11
r:+0.63 23.32 49.11 (25.79)
8 Navikonis, Tomas 23 Ohio State Unive 49.09 49.15
r:+0.68 23.58 49.15 (25.57)