Katie Ledecky is already relishing the prospect of winning more Olympic gold medals in Tokyo after taking the Rio Games by storm.
The teenage swimming sensation won four golds and a silver at the Olympic Aquatics Stadium after taking the 800-meter freestyle title in London four years ago at just 15 years old.
Ledecky can now look forward to starting life as a student at Stanford University after opting against turning professional and the 19-year-old cannot wait to showcase her talents in the 2020 Tokyo Games.
"Sitting in this position now, I still do want more. I still do want to continue to succeed in this sport," she said. "I still want to have the opportunities to compete on this level. It's that same feeling: I just love this atmosphere. I love the Olympics. I love being here. I love forming these bonds with my teammates. I love meeting people from all different countries. And I want to have these opportunities again. I want to win the medals to represent my country really well.
"Once I get back into training, I'm going to be just as motivated as ever, if not more. I’m going to have a new environment [at Stanford], a new training group to work with. And I think we're all just going to be excited to see what we can do."
Ledecky has no regrets over her decision to remain an amateur for the time being.
"I'm only 19 years old and I only really want to represent myself and my family and my coach and my teammates," she said. "I don't really feel like I need to represent something bigger than that right now. I think down the road, I would love to be a pro swimmer. But first and foremost, I want to get a really great education and have the opportunities that collegiate swimming brings. And to do that, I had to remain an amateur, and I've really enjoyed it and embraced it.
"I've had so much fun these four years. I don't know what it would have looked like if I had gone professional. It would have looked a little different for sure. I'm really happy where I am right now in swimming and in life. I'm just a really happy person."