Gretchen Walsh Blazes 25.15 50 Fly For Pro Swim Series Record & World #1 Time

2025 Pro Swim Series – Fort Lauderdale

• Wednesday, April 30 – Saturday, May 3, 2025
• Fort Lauderdale, Florida
• Fort Lauderdale Aquatic Center
• LCM (50 meters)
• Meet Central
• Psych Sheets
• Live Results
• Live Recaps
  • Prelims: Day 2 | Day 3
  • Finals: Day 1 (Timed Finals) | Day 2

During the second preliminary session of the 2025 Pro Swim Series stop in Fort Lauderdale, 22-year-old Gretchen Walsh delivered a sensational swim in the 50 butterfly, clocking 25.15 to top the world rankings and set a new Pro Swim Series record. Her time eclipsed the previous mark of 25.65, set by Egypt’s Farida Osman in 2019.

Osman was formidable force in this event for years, having captured bronze-medal finishes at the World Championships in 2015, 2017, and 2024. Walsh, for her part, claimed a bronze of her own in this distance at the 2023 Worlds, where she went 25.46, just weeks after recording a new American and U.S. Open record of 25.11 at the 2023 U.S. World Trials.

That 25.11 still stands as the American and U.S. Open standard, but it could be in serious jeopardy tonight. Walsh was a mere 0.04 off those records in this morning’s prelim swim alone, raising the stakes for the final.

Adding even more intrigue, Sweden’s Sarah Sjostrom remains the only woman in history to have ever logged a time under 25 seconds in the 50 fly. With Walsh carrying such strong momentum, she may very well be the next woman to break that barrier—if not tonight, then quite possibly by the end of this summer.

Walsh currently ranks 4th on the all-time performers list in the event, tied with Japan’s Rikako Ikee. Their shared time is 25.11, with 25.07 marking the 3rd quickest, and 25.05 the 2nd fastest. Along with the 25-second barrier, these are additional times to keep in mind for the final.

Women’s 50 LCM Butterfly, Top 10 Performers All-Time:

1. 24.43 — Sarah Sjostrom (Sweden), 2014
2. 25.05 — Zhang Yufei (China), 2023
3. 25.07 — Therese Alshammar (Sweden), 2009
4. 25.11 — Rikako Ikee (Japan), 2018 & Gretchen Walsh (USA), 2023
5. N/A
6. 25.17 — Melanie Henique (France), 2021
7. 25.20 — Francesca Halsall (Great Britain), 2014
8. 25.24 — Jeanette Ottesen (Denmark), 2013
9. 25.24 — Ranomi Kromowidjojo (Netherlands), 2021
10. 25.28 — Marleen Veldhuis (Netherlands), 2009

Todd Desorbo-trained Walsh made waves last night with her first-ever sub-53 performance in the 100 free. Clocking 52.90, Walsh defeated the Olympic silver medalist in the event, Torri Huske (52.95), and Kate Douglass, the 2023 U.S. National Champion and 2024 U.S. Olympic Trials winner (53.61).

Outside of the long course pool, Walsh has firmly established herself as the top short course swimmer on the planet. While her dominance in short course yards was already evident during her standout career at the University of Virginia, she finally had the opportunity to showcase that ability in short course meters last year—and did so in spectacular fashion..

She exploded at the Short Course World Championships this past December. There, she earned seven gold medals, set 11 world records across six different events (including two relays), and rewrote the record books in the 50 free (22.83), 50 fly (23.94), 100 fly (52.71), and 100 IM (55.11). She also posted the second-fastest time ever in the 100 free at 50.31.

Walsh’s big breakout on the long course international stage began at the 2024 U.S. Olympic Trials, where she opened with a world record in the 100 fly (55.18) and followed it with a 55.31 in the final—the second-fastest performance in history—to secure her place on the Olympic team. She also qualified in the 50 and 100 free events. At the Paris Games, she claimed silver in the 100 fly (55.63, behind Huske), finished 4th in the 50 free (24.21), and touched 8th in the 100 free (53.04). She also earned three relay medals: two golds in the women’s 4×100 medley and mixed 4×100 medley relays, and one silver in the 4×100 free relay.

Walsh enters this season as a strong contender for gold in the 50 fly at the World Championships, a co-favorite with teammate Huske in the 100 fly, and a serious medal threat in both sprint free events. Her 2024 world rankings reflect this status: #1 in the 100 fly (55.18), #2 in the 50 fly (25.20), #6 in the 50 free (24.06), and #12 in the 100 free (53.04).