In an unusual exchange for the normally teeth-grinding tension before a race for gold, Ledecky stepped toward Titmus. It could have been a moment to say, essentially: “Look, girl. I’m the top dog here. Move your stuff.”

But that’s not how this relationship works. You might want a knife fight. What you get is a group hug.

“She was freaking out,” Ledecky said. “I didn’t want her to feel bad or anything.”

Such sweetness — toward your most significant rival.

“I wouldn’t consider it a rivalry,” Ledecky said. “I mean, I think it’s a friendship.”

There are so many realities in that statement and so many realities in the race that played out. The event was billed as potentially one of the best Olympic races of this millennium, what with Ledecky, Titmus and Canada’s Summer McIntosh world record holders in the event at some point. The opening night of what promises to be a rollicking swim meet focused on those three, each an accomplished competitor. Look out.

The problem with the idea that there might be blood in the pool is that it’s really just adrenaline.

Ledecky, the 27-year-old from Bethesda who counts the 400 free in 2016 among her seven Olympic golds, is among the nicest, most pleasant people you could encounter in this shiny steel suburb west of Paris — or anywhere on the planet, for that matter. She is not as much threatened by Titmus, who memorably beat her in this event at the Tokyo Olympics to become the standard-bearer at the distance, as she is pushed by her. Add the teenager McIntosh to the mix, and the competition is fierce. The aftermath is friendly.

“It’s nice to catch up with her,” Titmus said, “see her and have a chat.”

There will be spice at the Olympic pool this week — and maybe more, given the presence of 11 Chinese swimmers who tested positive for a banned substance before the Tokyo Games but were allowed to compete. That so many are back, after no repercussions, has left swimmers from Western nations openly wondering whether this is a clean competition and some Chinese saying the rest of the world is just scared of their accomplishments.

That storyline thankfully didn’t touch the women’s 400 free. The building was electric during introductions, with Ledecky receiving a thunderous ovation as she walked out last based on her performance in the preliminaries. That in itself was something of a development because Titmus has three times swam faster than Ledecky’s best time, the then-world record she set as a teenager at the 2016 Rio de Janeiro Olympics. To show up and show out, even in a morning semifinal, wasn’t nothing — and it gave her the coveted lane over Titmus for the final, at this point a rarity.

“I joked with her before the medals,” Ledecky said of swimming the better semifinal time, “‘You’re getting a little comfortable there in Lane 4.’”

Right, the medals. Though New Zealand’s Erika Fairweather swam faster in the morning than McIntosh — and, indeed, is one of just five women in history to swim under four minutes in this event — the race was touted as a three-way battle royale. Of the 30 best times in the history of the event, Titmus, McIntosh and Ledecky own 30 of them.

So the buzz was real. La Défense Arena normally holds indoor rugby matches. It has been modified to have a pool here. With the swimmers at the starting blocks, it buzzed.

“I’d like to think that I contributed a little bit to the buildup around that race with my performances,” said Ledecky, never boastful, always realistic. “But they’ve continued to get faster over the years and push the pace in this event, and it’s incredibly exciting to be a part of it. I think we could all still feel the energy in the stadium today, and that definitely spurred us on.”

The energy may not have matched the race. Titmus took control from the start, blazing over the first 50 meters in 27.31 seconds, by which time Ledecky was fourth. Titmus led after 100 meters and 200 meters and every time the swimmers touched the wall. When the 23-year-old from Tasmania beat Ledecky three years ago in Tokyo, she was the first person to do so in an individual Olympic race. Even if that was predictable given performances before those pandemic-delayed Games, it still was stunning.

This felt normal, expected.

“It’s a different feeling winning it again after the first time,” Titmus said. “I know what it takes to be an Olympic champion, and I know how hard it is racing in these circumstances.”

As does Ledecky. By the last 50 meters, the order was preordained and a bit anticlimactic: Titmus for gold in 3:57.49, McIntosh for silver 0.88 seconds behind her and Ledecky with the first bronze among her 11 Olympic medals in 4:00.86.

“I would like to have gone a little faster tonight,” said Ledecky, who swam 3:58.35 at the U.S. Olympic trials last month.

Ledecky’s best events — she owns the 16 best times in the 800 free and the 19 best times in the 1,500 free — are still to come. So she could say quite truthfully, “I’m looking forward to the rest of the week.” Before she left the medal stand, she was handed a camera, and her job was to take a selfie of the trio — herself in front, Titmus immediately behind her, McIntosh in back.

“I was joking with them,” Ledecky said, “like, ‘You’re going to give the oldest person the phone to figure out how to open it up and click the right button?’”

Maybe it wasn’t the time she wanted. Maybe it wasn’t the race she expected. But part of coming to the Olympics for a fourth time is acknowledging challengers who weren’t there when she made her debut a dozen years ago as a 15-year-old. When Ledecky won gold in the 800 freestyle in London, Titmus was 11, McIntosh 5. They were dreamers then. Now they are performers — and rivals and maybe even friends.

“We have a lot of respect for each other,” Ledecky said. “We love competing against each other.”

There will be fights in the pool this week. They didn’t happen on opening night. And that’s just fine.