Watch: Katie Ledecky won five Olympic medals - in her gap year

Katie Ledecky capped off one of the greatest performances in Olympic history with her fourth gold medal and second world record, shattering her own mark in the 800m freestyle Friday night.

Ledecky and Debbie Meyer are now the only female swimmers to sweep the three longest freestyle races.

Final moments of the women's 800m freestyle, Katie Ledecky is a freak of nature lol. pic.twitter.com/HTjtTTchgi

— Jamie (@TheGrandSlams) August 13, 2016

Meyer took the 200, 400 and 800 at Mexico City in 1968.

In recent days, Meyer’s been texting with Ledecky’s’ mother, Mary Gen. Before the 800, the former swimming great sent along a video message that was forwarded to Katie.

“I try not to think about the history much,” Ledecky said. “But joining Debbie in that history is incredible.”

How #KatieLedecky won the 800m freestyle at the #Olympics.https://t.co/EiwG1zr034 pic.twitter.com/cFF4zCRJzQ

— Randy Olson (@randal_olson) August 13, 2016

She also followed fellow swimmers Amy Van Dyken and Missy Franklin as the only American women to win as many as four golds in a single Olympics. Ledecky also topped the podium with the 4x200 free relay, and earned silver in the 4x100 free relay.

Ledecky rarely shows her emotions, maintaining the sort of even keel that works so well in the pool. On the medal stand, though, she finally broke down in tears.

She is eager to get on to the next phase of her life. After putting off college for a year to focus on the Olympics, she’ll head to Stanford this autumn and join fellow US teammates Simone Manuel and Leah Smith.

“It’s going to be exciting,” Ledecky said.

“I am heading home in a couple of days and I’ll have to get all my stuff for my dorm and get everything ready.

“It’ll be tough leaving home, but I’m excited for the next chapter.

“I’ve really enjoyed being an amateur, there are some pressures that come with being a professional swimmer, and I don’t think I am ready for that.”

She was sure ready for Rio, though.

Either way, she and we might usefully reflect that in Rio, Ledecky added five Olympic medals and two further world records to her CV — in her gap year.