The Gretchen File: Recounting All of Walsh’s Swims In Earth-Shattering SC Worlds Performance

2024 SHORT COURSE WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPS

• December 10-15, 2024
• Duna Arena, Budapest, Hungary
• SCM (25m)
• Meet Central
• Roster Index
• SwimSwam Preview Index
• Pick’em
• Psych Sheets
• Live Results
• Prelims Live Recap: Day 1 | Day 2 | Day 3 | Day 4 | Day 5 | Day 6
• Finals Live Recap: Day 1  | Day 2 | Day 3 | Day 4 | Day 5 | Day 6

Gretchen Walsh‘s performance at the 2024 Short Course World Championships was nothing short of spectacular no matter what metric you look at.

Seven gold medals. Eleven world records. A monstrous $290K payday from World Aquatics.

Anyone who has followed NCAA swimming over the past two years wasn’t surprised to see Walsh rewrite the short course meter record books in her first major meet in the format (and second ever outside of a dual meet in October that also included four records), but regardless, what she did in Budapest was sensational.

THE WORLD RECORDS

Nine of Walsh’s world records came individually across four events: the women’s 50 free, 50 fly, 100 fly and 100 IM.

She took down the 100 fly record in all three rounds of the event, from 53.24 in the prelims to 52.71 in the final, and she lowered each of the other individual world records twice.

Two more were added on the U.S. women’s 4×100 free and 4×100 medley relays.

With 11 world records at the meet, Walsh surpasses Mark Spitz and Michael Phelps for breaking the most all-time marks at a single competition.

Spitz lowered seven world records at the 1972 Olympics en route to winning a record seven gold medals, and then Phelps took down seven world records on his way to winning eight gold medals at the 2008 Games in Beijing, breaking Spitz’s all-time mark for gold medals at a single Olympics.

World Record Swims – 11

Where It Started vs Where It Is Now

THE AMERICAN/CHAMPIONSHIP RECORDS

In addition to breaking world records in four individual events, plus the two relays she raced, Walsh also picked up a new American and World Championship Record in the 100 free.

She first clocked 50.49 in the semis to break Kate Douglass‘ American Record of 50.82 and Emma McKeon‘s Championship Record of 50.77, and then in the final, put up a time of 50.31 to come just six one-hundredths shy of Cate Campbell‘s world record of 50.25, ranking Walsh #2 all-time.

All told, she broke 14 American Records, with her two swims in the 100 free semis and final, and the 50 free prelims, coming in addition to her world records.

American Record Swims – 14

All 14 of her American Record swims were World Championship Records, and she added a 15th in the heats of the 100 IM, clocking 56.06 to down the meet record held by Katinka Hosszu (56.70) while narrowly missing the world record she set in October (55.98).

Championship Record Swims – 15

THE RELAY SPLITS

To manage her workload, Walsh wasn’t used on any of the mixed relays for the U.S., but contributed three blistering legs the three times she raced a relay at the championships.

In the women’s 4×100 free relay prelims, she anchored in 50.51, which ranks as the sixth-fastest split in history. In the final, her 50.67 split ties for the 12th-fastest-ever. Given they were both slower than she was individually later in the meet, there’s no debating that she could’ve been faster here, but the U.S. won in dominant fashion regardless.

At the end of the meet in the women’s 4×100 medley relay final, her 18th swim in six days, Walsh split 52.84 on the fly leg, the fastest ever by over a second, though still slightly slower than her 52.71 from the individual event.

Coming into the meet, the only relay split in history under 54 seconds was the 53.93 produced by Emma McKeon at the 2022 SC Worlds.

WORLD TITLES

Walking away with seven gold medals at the competition, Walsh was the most decorated swimmer in Budapest, with American teammates Regan Smith and Kate Douglass matching her seven medal haul, but with fewer golds (four apiece).

Russian native Miron Lifintsev, representing Neutral Athletes ‘B’, ranked #2 on the individual medal table after winning five gold medals.

Walsh’s Gold Medals

• Women’s 50 free
• Women’s 100 free
• Women’s 50 fly
• Women’s 100 fly
• Women’s 100 IM
• Women’s 4×100 free relay
• Women’s 4×100 medley relay

Walsh’s seven gold medals ranks 2nd all-time at the Short Course World Championships, trailing Olivia Smoliga‘s record eight gold medal haul at the 2018 Short Course World Championships in Hangzhou, China.

COMING OUT OF THE MEET…

Walsh owns the:

• Fastest, second-fastest and fifth-fastest swims ever in the women’s 50 free.
• Second and third-fastest swims ever in the women’s 100 free.
• Three fastest swims ever in the women’s 50 fly. If we included her opening splits from the semis and the final of the 100 fly, she has the five fastest.
• Three fastest swims ever in the women’s 100 fly.
• Four fastest swims ever in the women’s 100 IM.
• Fastest 100 fly relay split in history.
• Sixth-fastest 100 free relay split in history.
• Individual world records in the women’s 50 free, 50 fly, 100 fly and 100 IM.
• Relay world records in the women’s 4×100 free and 4×100 medley.
• Seven Short Course World Championship gold medals, giving her eight world titles in her career after winning gold at the 2023 World Aquatics Championships in the women’s 4×100 medley relay (LC).

Walsh’s Full Program – 18 Swims

The University of Virginia star had her busiest day come on the opening day of racing with four swims, though no individual finals. She had three events for the following four days before closing things out with two finals on the last night of racing.

• Day 1 – December 10
  • Women’s 50 fly prelims – 24.02 (WR)
  • Women’s 4×100 free relay prelims – 3:31.16 /50.51 anchor
  • Women’s 50 fly semi-finals – 23.94 (WR)
  • Women’s 4×100 free relay final – 3:25.01 (WR) / 50.67 anchor
• Day 2 – December 11
  • Women’s 100 free prelims – 51.64
  • Women’s 50 fly final – 24.01
  • Women’s 100 free semi-finals – 50.49 (AR/CR)
• Day 3 – December 12
  • Women’s 100 IM prelims – 56.06 (CR)
  • Women’s 100 free final – 50.31 (AR/CR)
  • Women’s 100 IM semi-finals – 55.71 (WR)
• Day 4 – December 13
  • Women’s 100 fly prelims – 53.24 (WR)
  • Women’s 100 IM final – 55.11 (WR)
  • Women’s 100 fly semi-finals – 52.87 (WR)
• Day 5 – December 14
  • Women’s 50 free prelims – 23.02 (CR/AR)
  • Women’s 100 fly final – 52.71 (WR)
  • Women’s 50 free semi-finals – 22.87 (WR)
• Day 6 – December 15
  • Women’s 50 free final – 22.83 WR)
  • Women’s 4×100 medley relay final – 3:40.41 (WR) / 52.84 fly split

For her efforts, not surprisingly, Walsh was named Swimmer of the Meet after one of the greatest single-meet performances in history.