SINGAPORE, Aug. 2 (Xinhua) -- American swimming legend Katie Ledecky captured her seventh world title in the women's 800-meter freestyle at the World Aquatics Championships on Saturday, reaffirming her dominance in the event she has owned for more than a decade.

The 28-year-old shattered her own championship record with a winning time of 8 minutes and 5.62 seconds, holding off fierce challenges from Australia's Lani Pallister and Canada's Summer McIntosh in one of the most highly anticipated races of the meet.

"That's pretty incredible, three of us going under 8:10... incredibly fast," said Ledecky. "They pushed me all the way. I'm just really happy I could put that together."

Ledecky first won the 800m world title in 2013 in Barcelona, and has claimed gold in every edition since - except Doha 2024, which she skipped to prioritize Olympic preparation.

The American also won the 1,500m freestyle earlier this week in Singapore and now boasts a staggering 23 World Championship gold medals, alongside her nine Olympic golds - the most by any female swimmer in history. She also holds the world record in the 800m (8:04.12), set earlier this year.

"I don't think I have anything to lose at this point of my career. Just enjoying the crowd, swimming against the best in the world. Everyone in that heat is the next generation of swimmers coming up; just proud to be a part of it."

While much of the buildup focused on a possible head-to-head battle between Ledecky and 18-year-old McIntosh, it was Pallister who nearly staged an upset. The Australian swam a personal best 8:05.98, breaking the Oceania record and finishing just 0.36 seconds behind Ledecky to take silver.

Pallister, bronze medalist in th 1,500m race, could not hide her happiness, "I didn't really feel like I was in it. I feel like I was kind of just watching them to go about their business, and I was kind of just on the side thinking, 'Oh, who's going to win?' But I'm really happy with how I put it together. "

McIntosh, already a three-time gold medalist at the championships, took bronze in 8:07.29, delivering a strong performance but falling short of the blistering pace set by the top two.

"I think I was thinking too much about Katie being beside me and trying to keep up with her and not let her take over too much, rather than just swimming my own race," she said. "I think that was a big learning lesson for me."

Italy's Simona Quadarella finished fourth in 8:12.81, setting a new European record, while China's Li Bingjie came fifth in 8:15.59. ■