The most decorated American woman in Olympic history, swimmer Katie Ledecky, attended Sunday’s game between the Washington Capitals and New York Islanders — a 4-1 victory for the Caps.
Ledecky, who famously grew up going to Washington Capitals games and sat with Michael Jordan in the owner’s box as a child, was at UBS Arena, seated in the lower bowl. As captured by Ted Starkey, she was introduced to the crowd with 8:08 remaining in the first period, wearing a coat over a blue Islanders shirt.
Her uncle, Jon Ledecky, is a co-owner of the New York Islanders and their AHL affiliate, the Bridgeport Sound Tigers. He previously was a minority owner of the Capitals.
Katie appears to have come to New York for Thanksgiving break to spend time with family. She also attended the Islanders’ Thanksgiving Eve game against the Boston Bruins — a 3-1 loss. She received a standing ovation from the crowd like the American hero she is.
That night, Katie also appeared on MSG’s broadcast and interviewed with Shannon Hogan during an intermission.
“(I’m a) huge Islanders fan,” she said. “I watch every night. I feel like I’m living in my TV right now because I’m here with you.”
On Instagram, Katie posted highlights of her trip to New York, including meeting Cal Clutterbuck, Matt Martin, and fellow famous Islanders fan, Ralph Macchio.
Currently, Katie lives in Gainesville, Florida, and volunteers at the University of Florida as a swimming coach for both the men’s and women’s programs. She first moved down to the area in 2021 to train with Gators head coach Anthony Nesty.
“Having completed my college degree this year, I am moving east to be closer to home and family,” Ledecky wrote on Instagram then. “I’ve decided to train at the University of Florida with Coach Anthony Nesty and the outstanding mid-distance and distance training group there. I’m looking forward to the opportunities and challenges that lie ahead in the next phase of my swimming career.”
Katie also published a book in June 2024 entitled Just Add Water: My Swimming Life, which became a New York Times bestselling memoir.
In 2013, Katie returned to Capital One Arena to celebrate her 16th birthday, where she received a gold Capitals jersey and met Alex Ovechkin after the game.
Photo credit: @KatieLedecky
During that appearance, she revealed that her favorite Capital growing up was Adam Oates, and they both got drinks at the same Starbucks. She grew up in Bethesda, Maryland.
As an athlete, Katie has represented the United States at the Olympics four times. She’s a nine-time Olympic gold medalist, winning 14 medals overall and breaking world records 17 different times.