As a nine-year-old, Katie Ledecky was a budding swimmer dreaming of wearing Olympic gold.
While pursuing her dreams, Ledecky got an opportunity to meet an accomplished Olympian - Michael Phelps. A picture of the encounter from 2006 was recently discovered by ESPN's Darren Rovell and has been retweeted over 28,000 times.
10 years ago: A 9-year-old named Katie Ledecky gets an autograph from Michael Phelps (Credit: Ledecky Family) pic.twitter.com/oOOPns5mor
— Darren Rovell (@darrenrovell) August 10, 2016
10 years later, Ledecky is now Phelps' teammate and has five Olympic medals to solidify a legacy of her own.
To celebrate the achievements of both phenoms, the Olympians decided to re-create the photo they took earlier this morning on "Today."
In the photo re-creation, Phelps is seen getting Ledecky's autograph.
.@katieledecky, @MichaelPhelps re-create famous autograph photo 10 years later! https://t.co/YmAPkmK0s5 #RioTODAY pic.twitter.com/SSanpCM6Yt
— TODAY (@TODAYshow) August 15, 2016
On Saturday before Phelps won his 23rd gold medal, the swimmer praised Ledecky's dominance on Facebook Live.
He also showed off his home state of Maryland where both he and Ledecky hail from.
"Katie is just tearing it up," Phelps said. "The state of Maryland is getting it done, we got a couple of medals to bring back to the good state of Maryland."
Phelps also believes he would beat Ledecky in at least one swimming event.
"I think I could take her in a 400. 800 or above, she would whoop me and tear me to shreds."
Photos: Swimming at the Rio Olympics
