Lani Pallister stuns Katie Ledecky with her first international 800 free loss at Pan Pacs
Beth Harris
Associated Press
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Katie Ledecky, of the United States, competes in the women's 400 meters freestlye final at the Pan Pacific Swimming Championships Friday, Aug. 14, 2026 in Irvine, Calif. (AP Photo/Gregory Bull)From left, silver medalist Katie Ledecky, of the United States, gold medalist Lani Pallister, of Australia, and bronze medalist Erika Fairweather, of New Zealand celebrate after the the women's 400 meters freestyle final at the Pan Pacific Swimming Championships Friday, Aug. 14, 2026 in Irvine, Calif. (AP Photo/Gregory Bull)
Copyright 2026 The Associated Press. All rights reserved
Katie Ledecky, of the United States, competes in the women's 400 meters freestlye final at the Pan Pacific Swimming Championships Friday, Aug. 14, 2026 in Irvine, Calif. (AP Photo/Gregory Bull)
IRVINE, Calif. – 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.
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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.
“Katie's such a dominant force,” a breathless Pallister said.
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