Olympic swimming: Ledecky is fastest in heats of 1500; Marchand advances in 2 more races

NANTERRE, France (AP) — Katie Ledecky got started on what she hopes will be her first gold medal of the Paris Olympics, topping the field in the preliminaries of the women's 1,500-meter freestyle on Tuesday.

Finishing more than a half-lap ahead of the closest challenger in her heat, Ledecky posted a time of 15 minutes, 47.43 seconds.

She'll have the prime lane in the middle of the pool for the final Wednesday. Her prime challenger appears to be Italy's Simona Quadarella, who was second-fastest in the heats at 15:51.19.

The only other swimmers to break 16 minutes were Anastasiia Kirpichnikova of France (15:52.46) and Isabel Gose of Germany (15:53.27).

Ledecky, who earned a bronze in the 400 freestyle, is looking to lock down the 12th Olympic medal of her career. That would tie her with fellow Americans Dara Torres, Jenny Thompson and Natalie Coughlin for the most ever by a female swimmer.

Ledecky already holds the mark for the most individual golds by a woman with six.

“I’ve been in touch with those three in the past and I know I have a lot of support back home,” Ledecky said. “Just looking forward to continuing on this week.”

The other American, Katie Grimes, finished a disappointing 10th (16:12.11) and failed to advance.

Grimes won a silver medal in the 400 individual medley and still has the marathon race scheduled for next week as she attempts to make the podium in both pool swimming and open water.

Coming off his dominating victory in the men's 400 individual medley, Léon Marchand of France took on a daunting double.

He was sixth-fastest in the preliminaries of the men's 200 butterfly at 1:55.26 and returned about two hours later to post the third-best time in the 200 breaststroke at 2:09.55, setting another grueling double in the evening semifinals.

Marchand was spurred on again by a raucous crowd of some 15,000 at La Defense Arena.

“I’m very grateful for the French people just to show up and cheer like that. I think it’s amazing,” he said. "I don’t think anyone has seen that before, so it’s been great for me. I’m using all the energy from the stadium and trying to swim as fast as possible in every race. Tonight will be very exciting for me.”

The finals of both races are Wednesday night, also just two hours apart.

Kristóf Milák of Hungary, the defending gold medalist in the 200 fly, led the way in the heats for that event in 1:53.92. South Korea's Cho Sung-jae set the pace in the 200 breast at 2:09.45.

American Jack Alexy topped men’s 100 freestyle at 47.57, followed by France’s Maxime Grousset (47.70) and Romania’s David Popovici (47.92), who was coming off a gold medal the previous night in the 200 free.

Defending Olympic champion Britain set the pace in the heats of the 4x200 freestyle relay at 7:05.11, with the U.S. claiming the second spot for the evening final in 7:05.57.

AP Summer Olympics: https://apnews.com/hub/2024-paris-olympic-games

Blake Pieroni, of the United States, competes in the men's 4 x 200-meter freestyle relay at the 2024 Summer Olympics, Tuesday, July 30, 2024, in Nanterre, France. (AP Photo/Ashley Landis)

Swimmers start in the men's 4x200-meter freestyle relay at the 2024 Summer Olympics, Tuesday, July 30, 2024, in Nanterre, France. (AP Photo/Petr David Josek)

Leon Marchand, of France, competes during a heat in the men's 200-meter breaststrokeat the 2024 Summer Olympics, Tuesday, July 30, 2024, in Nanterre, France. (AP Photo/Ashley Landis)

Katie Ledecky, of the United States, leaves the pool following her heat in the women's 1500-meter freestyle at the 2024 Summer Olympics, Tuesday, July 30, 2024, in Nanterre, France. (AP Photo/Petr David Josek)

Katie Ledecky, of the United States, reacts following her heat in the women's 1500-meter freestyle at the 2024 Summer Olympics, Tuesday, July 30, 2024, in Nanterre, France. (AP Photo/Petr David Josek)

Leon Marchand, of France, competes during a heat in the men's 200-meter breaststroke at the 2024 Summer Olympics, Tuesday, July 30, 2024, in Nanterre, France. (AP Photo/Petr David Josek)

Katie Ledecky, of the United States, competes during a heat in the women's 1500-meter freestyle at the 2024 Summer Olympics, Tuesday, July 30, 2024, in Nanterre, France. (AP Photo/Ashley Landis)

CANYON DE CHELLY NATIONAL MONUMENT, Ariz. (AP) — Commercial air tours will soon be prohibited over Canyon de Chelly National Monument in northeastern Arizona under a plan approved this week by the Federal Aviation Administration and the National Park Service.

The park service said in a statement that the plan was was signed Thursday and will take effect in 180 days, barring any legal challenges. It will ban the tours over the park and within a half mile (800 meters) outside its boundary.

“Prohibiting commercial air tours protects these lands’ cultural and spiritual significance to the Navajo Nation,” said park Superintendent Lyn Carranza. “Canyon de Chelly National Monument’s Air Tour Management Plan honors the unique nation-to-nation relationship regarding decisions affecting the park and helps to preserve one of the most important archeological landscapes in the southwest.”

The park lies within the Four Corners region inside the Navajo Nation and is among the most visited national monuments in the United States. It's known for its soaring sandstone cliffs and 800-foot (244-meter) high Spider Rock spire. Prehistoric rock art is found throughout the area, which has been home to Native Americans for millennia.

The sightseeing flights reportedly date back to the 1930s, when crews building the Hoover Dam on the Arizona-Nevada border asked helicopter pilots working on the project to give flyovers to their families.

The tours offering a unique overhead view of spectacular landscapes have long been popular at Grand Canyon National Park in Arizona. Some of the nation’s busiest spots for tour operators have included Hawaii Volcanoes National Park, which is home to one of the world’s most active volcanoes, and Haleakala National Park.

Supporters of the tours say they offer an exciting experience to tourists and allow older people and those with disabilities to see and enjoy the parks. Critics say the flights are an unnecessarily dangerous way to view some of the most stunning public lands in the United States.

Rules designating routes and minimum altitudes were set in 1986 after two tour aircraft collided over the Grand Canyon, killing 25 people. Still, there are currently numerous options for helicopter tours to the Grand Canyon, departing from places including Las Vegas and Sedona, Arizona.

Critics also complain that the buzz of helicopters drowns out the sounds of nature, disrupting the experiences of visitors on the ground and tribal members who call the land around the parks home.

The park service works with the FAA to implement the National Park Air Tour Management Act of 2000, which requires tour operators who want to conduct such commercial air tours to get FAA approval. The law also requires the FAA, in conjunction with the park service, to establish management plans for air tours for those parks and nearby tribal lands where applications are made.

Canyon de Chelly is the last of roughly two dozen national park units where the group Public Employees for Environmental Responsibility had fought for flyover restrictions. Other national parks where such commercial flyovers essentially are or will be banned in coming years include Badlands National Park and Mount Rushmore National Memorial in South Dakota, Glacier National Park in Montana, and Bandelier National Monument in New Mexico. Only two air tours per year are allowed at Death Valley National Park along the California-Nevada border.

FILE - The vast landscape opens up inside Canyon de Chelly National Monument, May 30, 2010, near Chinle, Ariz. (AP Photo/Ross D. Franklin, File)