Gretchen Walsh had a historic performance at the Short Course World Championships in Budapest, setting a stunning 11 world records throughout the six-day meet.
The 21-year-old broke world records in four individual events, but the only race where she produced the fastest time in history over all three rounds in Budapest was the women’s 100 fly.
In the preliminary heats, Walsh put up a time of 53.24, breaking Maggie MacNeil‘s world record of 54.05 to become the first swimmer in history under the 54-second barrier.
Walsh then became the first swimmer ever under 53 seconds in the semi-finals, clocking 52.87, and then the next night in the final, she one-upped herself again, bringing the world record down to 52.71 to win gold in dominant fashion.
RACE VIDEO (USA)
All-Time Performances, Women’s 100 Butterfly (SCM)
- Gretchen Walsh (USA), 52.71 – 2024 Short Course Worlds
- Gretchen Walsh (USA), 52.87 – 2024 Short Course Worlds
- Gretchen Walsh (USA), 53.24 – 2024 Short Course Worlds
- Maggie MacNeil (CAN), 54.05 – 2022 Short Course Worlds
- Kelsi Dahlia (USA), 54.59 – 2021 ISL Match 18
That swim marked the seventh world record for Walsh at the championships, and she would go on to add four more.
She ended the meet as the world record holder in the women’s 50 free (22.83), 50 fly (23.94), 100 fly (52.71) and 100 IM (55.11), plus the women’s 4×100 free relay (3:25.01) and 4×100 medley relay (3:40.41). In the 100 free, she produced the second-fastest swim in history, 50.31, to give her a total of seven gold medals to lead all swimmers in Budapest.
For her efforts, Walsh was named Swimmer of the Meet after one of the greatest single-meet performances in history.
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