A gold medal in the 1,500-meter freestyle is the pinnacle of achievement for long-distance swimmers. The competition is the longest distance swimmers attempt in a standard swimming meet, earning it the moniker “the mile race” among water sports enthusiasts.
This is Pretty Crazy, Right?
Eight women, including Team USA’s Katie Ledecky and Erica Sullivan, have qualified for the 1,500-meter final at the Tokyo Olympics. These ladies will be the first to compete for an Olympic medal in this event. Ledecky will be the top seed in lane four going into the finals after posting a preliminary time of 15 minutes, 35.35 seconds, which is phenomenally fast but still 15 seconds slower than her own world record. For these competitors, swimming a mile is routine; for the viewers at home, it will be quite a different experience. It’s natural to wonder, ”
How Many Laps is 1,500 Metres of Swimming?”
Considering the length of an Olympic pool is 50 metres, swimmers will need to complete 30 laps to cover one mile. If you’ve never swum a long distance race competitively before, let me tell you that it’s not a sprint. It will take even Ledecky around 15 minutes to complete the race, so after the first 50 metres you will have plenty of time to do things like use the restroom, get a snack or a glass of wine, let the dog out, and maybe even put the laundry in the drier.
To swim one mile in an Olympic pool (which is 50 metres long), swimmers would need to complete 30 laps. I’ve swum in a long-distance competition before, and trust me when I say that this is no sprint. Considering that even Ledecky will require around 15 minutes to finish the race, you can definitely go the restroom, grab a snack or a glass of wine, take the dog out, and maybe even put the laundry in the drier after the first 50 metres and still make it back in time for the final 100.
However, while waiting for the last two laps to complete, you should pay close attention to the TV. When the official’s bell rings, you know the front runner in the swimming event has made the turn into the home stretch. Whoever wins the gold will go down in Olympic lore, so don’t miss it if you can help it. Oh, and thank goodness this isn’t taking place in a standard 25-yard pool, since then you’d be in for the long haul: a whopping 66 laps.
She said, “It’s not easy when your times are world records; I’m always wanting to be better than I’ve ever been.” I’m extremely critical of my own abilities. But that’s how I think; I go into every race with the conviction that I can set a personal best in the pool, and that’s not easy.
Last Words
She went on to say that having such an outlook was both a boon and a bane. It’s helped me a lot, and it’s the reason I’ve swum so quickly and set so many records. Furthermore, it’s a challenging mentality to keep up for nine years.
