She's finally beaten Ledecky, now Pallister wants Olympic gold

Swimming superstar Lani Pallister wasn't meant to be a distance swimmer.

At the beginning of her career, she was focused on the butterfly events.

It was only when Pallister mistakenly selected the 800 metres freestyle on a race program (instead of the 100m butterfly) that her career path would change.

"I ended up swimming it [800m freestyle], qualified for my first junior team, and now I'm on the senior team, and short course world record holder for the event," Pallister told ABC Sport at the Australian Short Course Championships earlier this month.

It's been a packed year for the 24-year-old, but a satisfying one.

Her success at the Commonwealth Games in Glasgow, where she won gold in the 400m, 800m and 1,500m, saw her become the first woman at the Games to complete the treble.

But her performance at this year's Pan Pacific Swimming Championships in August, less than two weeks after the Glasgow Games, was her most remarkable breakthrough, beating United States powerhouse Katie Ledecky for the first time in the long course 800m freestyle.

"When you achieve a feat like that, you don't believe it until your hands are on the wall," Pallister said.

"It's not as much about just beating the one person in particular, but I think when you have someone as monumental as Katie, that definitely plays into the feelings and the sense of achievement off the back of it."

Pallister puts this success down to a change in coaching, making the shift from Michael Bohl to Dean Boxall over a year ago.

"The past 18-month journey with [Dean] has been unbelievable, and I've achieved things in swim times I didn't think possible for myself," Pallister said.

It is a change that could take her to the Los Angeles Olympics in 2028, earning redemption for the heartbreak she has experienced in the past few years.

Rebuilding after Paris

It hasn't been an easy journey for Pallister, with illness and mental health taking a toll on her swimming career.

In 2021, she developed an eating disorder and a series of illnesses that saw her miss qualification for the Tokyo Olympics.

After seeing improvement in her times in the lead-up to the Paris Olympics in 2024, COVID struck, causing Pallister to pull out of the 1,500 and 400m races and finish sixth in the 800 metres.

She thought her swimming career could be over at 22.

But after changing coaches, breaking world records in short course events, and finally claiming her win over Ledecky, Pallister is excited for the future and focusing on LA.

If everything goes right, an individual Olympic medal could finally be on the cards.

"I really wanted to focus on staying humble," Pallister said.

"There's a lot of work and a lot of things that are going to happen between now and the LA Olympics and I think that week over in LA in 2028 is going to be about consistency, repeat performance and just preparing."

Pallister will be 26 years old by the time the LA Games arrive, and 30 when Brisbane rolls around.

Age doesn't worry her though; moving to Boxall's squad has given her a fresh perspective.

"Female distance swimmers are slowly getting a little bit older," Pallister said, referring to Ledecky, who broke her own 800m world record at 28.

Any thought of retirement is far from Pallister's mind, and with a home Games in Brisbane in sight, it is tempting to hold on.

"At the end of the day, swimming's one of those sports, when you know you're done, you'll be done," Pallister said.

"With friends and family, in a city that I grew up swimming [in], it's probably the perfect way to end, and I think there's a lot of athletes that are in my age group that are kind of thinking the same thing."

Defending her title

Before the LA and Brisbane Games, however, Pallister will be continuing her busy year, having qualified for the 2026 World Aquatic Championships in December.

The championships will be held in China, with Pallister returning as the defending champion and short course 800m world record holder.

At the Australian Short Course Championships, she claimed victory in the 200, 400, 800, and 1,500 metres, meaning her World Championships will be busy.

"The biggest goal for me this year is going back to a World Championships and defending my back-to-back title in the 800," Pallister said.

"When you have the opportunity to race on the international stage and get more race practice under the belt, particularly before the next two years going into LA, it is something that's really important."