Olympian Kathleen Ledecky Balances a Glass of Chocolate Milk on Her Head While Swimming

Who needs a gold medal when you can do this?!

Katie Ledecky of the United States competes in a preliminary heat of the Women's 800m freestyle on Day Seven of the 2024 U.S. Olympic Team Swimming Trials at Lucas Oil Stadium on June 21, 2024 in Indianapolis, Indiana.
(Image credit: Getty Images)

Olympian swimmer Kathleen Ledecky is showing off her skills ahead of the Paris 2024 Olympics in a rather unusual and ridiculously impressive way.

On Thursday, June 20, a video of the gold medal winner "preparing" for the Games surfaced online, showing Ledecky balancing a glass of chocolate milk on the top of her head as she expertly swims the length of a pool.

"This video of Kathleen Ledecky balancing chocolate milk on her head while swimming is more impressive to me than her seven Olympic gold medals," one awe-struck fan posted on X, formerly known as Twitter, along with the same video highlighting Ledecky's swimming prowess.

"Skills for days," another posted, while also mentioning that the athlete has won seven Olympic gold medals and 21 world championship gold medals, making her the most decorated female swimmer in history.

Katie Ledecky of the United States competes in a preliminary heat of the Women's 800m freestyle on Day Seven of the 2024 U.S. Olympic Team Swimming Trials at Lucas Oil Stadium on June 21, 2024 in Indianapolis, Indiana.

Katie Ledecky of the United States competes in a preliminary heat of the Women's 800m freestyle on Day Seven of the 2024 U.S. Olympic Team Swimming Trials at Lucas Oil Stadium on June 21, 2024 in Indianapolis, Indiana.

(Image credit: Getty Images)

"Micheal Phelps is the Kathleen Ledecky of Olympic male swimming," another X user posted, referencing the (to date) most decorated Olympian of all-time.

Of course, balancing an entire glass of chocolate milk on her head while effortlessly swimming the entire length of a pool is not the only recently impressive, mind-boggling display of Ledecky's athleticism. On Thursday, June 19, the Olympian set yet another record in the 1500-meter freestyle event, beating the previous world record (she also set, by the way) by an astonishing 17 seconds.

"I was pretty excited coming into tonight," Ledecky said on NBC Sports after winning her race, as reported by Newsweek. "I would have loved to have been a little faster, but I'll take it. I'll be better in a few weeks."

"Katie Ledecky just swam the FASTEST women’s 1500m freestyle time in the world this year, beating… Katie Ledecky," NBC Sports official X account posted.

"This Katie Ledecky stat doesn’t even seem real," the same account shared in a separate post, showcasing the top 18 1500-meter freestyle times, all held by, you guessed it, Ledecky herself.

Earlier this year, Ledecky was awarded the coveted Medal of Freedom by President Joe Biden, the nation's highest civilian honor. The history-making swimmer is only the second Olympian to be awarded the medal, following the greatest gymnast of all-time, Simone Biles.

"Thank you Mr. President @potus and everyone at the @whitehouse for this honor and an incredibly special day!" Ledecky posted on Instagram, along with two photos of her receiving the award and shaking the president's hand.

"Always representing the best of Team USA," the Team USA organization posted on their Instagram, along with a different photograph of Ledecky receiving the award. "The most decorated woman in swimming history @katieledecky adds the Presidential Medal of Freedom to her resume."

Danielle Campoamor
Weekend Editor

Danielle Campoamor is Marie Claire's weekend editor covering all things news, celebrity, politics, culture, live events, and more. In addition, she is an award-winning freelance writer and former NBC journalist with over a decade of digital media experience covering mental health, reproductive justice, abortion access, maternal mortality, gun violence, climate change, politics, celebrity news, culture, online trends, wellness, gender-based violence and other feminist issues. You can find her work in The New York Times, Washington Post, TIME, New York Magazine, CNN, MSNBC, NBC, TODAY, Vogue, Vanity Fair, Harper's Bazaar, Marie Claire, InStyle, Playboy, Teen Vogue, Glamour, The Daily Beast, Mother Jones, Prism, Newsweek, Slate, HuffPost and more. She currently lives in Brooklyn, New York with her husband and their two feral sons. When she is not writing, editing or doom scrolling she enjoys reading, cooking, debating current events and politics, traveling to Seattle to see her dear friends and losing Pokémon battles against her ruthless offspring. You can find her on X, Instagram, Threads, Facebook and all the places.