Michael Phelps, Katie Ledecky Recreate Iconic Photo

  • VOA Staff

FILE - United States' Katie Ledecky competes during a women's 800-meter freestyle heat in the swimming competitions at the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, Aug. 11, 2016.

Ten years ago, a 10-year-old Katie Ledecky had her picture taken with Michael Phelps as the young swimmer asked one of her idols for an autograph.

Now that Phelps is retired and Ledecky has become the new face of American swimming, the two recreated the old photo, this time with the roles reversed.

At the Rio Olympics, Ledecky took home four gold medals and one silver, winning several of her races by huge margins.

Phelps, 31, took home five golds and a silver, bringing his total over five Olympics to 28 medals, 23 of them gold.

The most decorated Olympian has retired before, after the London Olympics in 2012, but this time, he says he will not be coming back to the sport.

"Done, done, done — and this time I mean it," Phelps said on NBC’s Today Show. "I wanted to come back and finish my career how I wanted and this was the cherry on top of the cake."