Catholic News Service
WASHINGTON — Katie Ledecky, a U.S. swimmer from Maryland who says she always prays the Hail Mary before races, won the Olympic gold medal in women’s 800 freestyle Aug. 3.
Ledecky, 15, who will be a sophomore at Stone Ridge School of the Sacred Heart in Bethesda, Md., this fall, said her strong Catholic faith keeps her focused on God and what matters most in life. She and her family are longtime parishioners of the Church of the Little Flower in Bethesda.