Irvine, United States: Katie Ledecky clocked the second-fastest time in the world this year to win the 200m freestyle at the US swimming championships on Thursday, holding off the challenge of 2012 Olympic champion Allison Schmitt. Ledecky touched in 1:54.60 — second only to her own 1:54.56 in June this year — to add the 200m title to the 800m free crown she claimed on Wednesday. Ledecky led from start to finish, but the 28-year-old Schmitt, who returned to competition in April for the first time since the Rio Olympics, clung to her hip all the way to finish second in 1:55.82 and Ledecky looked as pleased with Schmitt’s finish as her own. She was already looking forward to teaming with Schmitt in the 4x200m freestyle relay at the Pan Pacific Championships in Tokyo in August. “I knew she was having a great swim the whole race, just having her right there the whole time right next to me,” Ledecky said of Schmitt, a three-time Olympian who stepped away from the sport after the Rio Olympics and only resumed training last September. — AFP
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