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Eight-time Olympic<\/a> gold medalist swimmer Katie Ledecky<\/strong><\/a> has been passionate about the sport since a young age, and she has her family to thank for that. Her parents, Mary Gen Ledecky<\/strong> and David Ledecky<\/strong>, and brother Michael Ledecky<\/strong> have been her biggest supporters through the years.\n<\/p>\n Katie was born to Mary Gen and David on March 17, 1997, in Washington D.C. She was raised in Bethesda, Maryland, and began swimming at age six.<\/p>\n Swimming runs in the Ledecky family! Mary Gen was a collegiate swimmer at the University of New Mexico and qualified for nationals three times. She went on to become a hospital administrator at Georgetown University Medical Center after her college swimming career came to an end. Mary Gen\u2019s father had the town pool in Williston, North Dakota, named after him in 2014, and Katie was asked to swim the first lap.<\/p>\n \u201cIt means so much to be able to swim that first lap,\u201d she said at the opening. \u201cMy grandfather loved his hometown and he loved his country. That\u2019s why it\u2019s extra special for me to swim at the pool dedication.\u201d<\/p>\n Before Katie competed in the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio de Janeiro<\/a>, Mary Gen said that all she wants is for her daughter to \u201cbe happy,\u201d whether that involves swimming or not.<\/p>\n \u201cShe\u2019s been so focused and so goal-oriented; we hope that she\u2019ll find something that she can be very happy doing and find a passion [in addition to the pool],\u201d she continued.<\/p>\n Katie\u2019s father is an attorney with degrees from two Ivy League schools \u2014 Harvard University and Yale Law School. While David has supported his daughter every step of the way in her swimming career, he has also stressed the importance of education, which is why he also supported her studies at Stanford University.<\/p>\n \u201cThe way our parents believe in education, it was a no-brainer Katie wasn\u2019t going to turn professional,\u201d David told ESPN<\/em> in 2016. His late paternal grandfather, Jaromir, immigrated to the U.S. from Czechoslovakia when he was 19 years old to study at Rutgers and New York University.<\/p>\n Katie was not only inspired by her mother to start swimming but also by her older brother. He had a swimming career in high school at Gonzaga College High School and had a top 10 finish in the National Catholic High School Championships\u2019 100-yard freestyle, according to Sporting News<\/em><\/a>. He graduated from Harvard College in 2016 with a B.A. in government and secondary in economics. Today, Michael manages \u201cSpecial Projects and Strategic Initiatives in Sports and Entertainment at EverFi,\u201d according to Meridian<\/a>.<\/p>\nWhen Was Katie Ledecky Born?<\/h2>\n
Who Is Katie Ledecky\u2019s Mom, Mary Gen Ledecky?<\/h2>\n
Who Is Katie Ledecky\u2019s Dad, David Ledecky?<\/h2>\n
Who Is Katie Ledecky\u2019s Brother, Michael Ledecky?<\/h2>\n