This week’s Global Podium for the best sportspeople in the world features Katie Ledecky, the Swedish Orienteering team, and João Soldado.
The Sportspedia’s Global Podium features the three sportspeople/athletes or teams that best achieved excellence in performance last week with their milestones and results.
| GLOBAL PODIUM OF THE WEEK |
 Gold: Katie Ledecky (United States of America, Swimming) She now has 19 gold medals at the World Aquatics Championships, which places her as the second-winningest swimmer ever at the event, and first among women. She just trails Michael Phelps (USA). This week, she won two more gold medals, as she became the third swimmer to win the same event for five consecutive World Championships -the women’s 800 meters- and she also won the Women’s 4×200 Freestyle Relay. She now has 29 of the fastest 30 women’s 800 meters ever run. Other highlights of the week included local hero Kristof Milak (HUN) winning the men’s 100m butterfly and the 200m butterfly -the 200 with a World Record-, while Summer McIntosh (CAN) won the women’s version, at just 15 years of age. She also won the women’s 400 m medley. The Men’s 50m Backstroke Final was also dramatic, as Justin Ress (USA) won the final, only to be disqualified and then reinstated with the gold again. In Open Water, Florian Wellbrock (DEU) added to his two pool medals with golds in the Team Relay and the Men’s 5k. In Diving, China won gold, as expected, in the men’s 3m synchronized and the women’s 10m platform. Watch a recap of her 800m win (FINA) |
 Silver: Lina Strand / Max Peter Bejmer / Gustav Bergman / Tove Alexandersson (Sweden, Orienteering) Sweden won its fourth consecutive Sprint Relay gold medal at the World Orienteering Championships. With this win, Tove Alexandersson now has 16 gold medals in the Championships, which places her second of all time in the history of the Championships. |
 Bronze: João Soldado (Portugal, Down Syndrome Table Tennis) João Soldado, who had been a Men’s Singles World Champion at the first World Championships in 2015, achieved a full sweep at the Down Syndrome Table Tennis World Championship, taking all four available golds: Men’s Singles, Men’s Doubles, Mixed Doubles, and Mixed Team. |
