This Picture of Katie Ledecky Meeting Michael Phelps as a Kid Is Next-Level Incredible

August 12, 2016

From Cosmopolitan

Long before she was an Olympic gold medalist for Team USA, Katie Ledecky was just a 9-year-old girl with big dreams of becoming a champion swimmer - and, like any young dolphin-to-be, she was also a big fan of Michael Phelps.

As a result, based on an incredible picture that's recently gone viral, it appears the first time Katie actually met Michael was not in preparation for Rio but during an autograph signing in 2006. Little did she (or he!) know, they'd one day be teammates going for the gold together.

If that isn't proof that if you work hard enough, you can end up working alongside your idols one day, then I just don't know what is.

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