Gretchen Walsh joins swim icons with 8th world record, 4th individual gold at short course worlds

Gretchen Walsh is having one of the best weeks in U.S. swimming history.

Walsh, 21, won her fourth individual title and broke an eighth world record (including relays) at the world short course championships in Budapest on Saturday.

She claimed the 100m butterfly in 52.71 seconds, lowering the world record just as she did in Friday’s preliminary heats and semifinals.

“Definitely a little bit shocked, but every single time I dove in, I changed something to get better,” she said.

SHORT COURSE WORLDS: Full Results | Broadcast Schedule

Walsh, who has blossomed in 2024, became the sixth American to win four or more individual titles at a single global championship — Olympics, World Championships and World Short Course Championships.

The others are legends: Mark Spitz (1972 Olympics), Michael Phelps (2004 Olympics, 2007 Worlds, 2008 Olympics), Ryan Lochte (2010 Short Course Worlds, 2011 Worlds), Katie Ledecky (2015 Worlds) and Caeleb Dressel (2019 Worlds).

It’s not apples to apples, but Walsh’s eighth world record (across four events, one a relay) is one more than Spitz’s total from the 1972 Olympics (one each in his seven gold-medal events) and Phelps’ total at the 2008 Olympics (in seven of his eight gold-medal events).

And she might not be done. Walsh could swim the 50m free final and be part of the U.S. women’s 4x100m medley relay on the last day of worlds on Sunday (11:30 a.m. ET, Peacock.)

Short course worlds, which debuted in 1993 and are held in 25-meter pools, are slightly different than traditional long course worlds and the Olympics, which both use 50-meter pools.

Short course worlds more favor swimmers who are strong off the walls and under water given the smaller pool. Walsh excelled in all pools this year, including swimming the fastest times in history in the 100 butterfly in 25-yard NCAA pools, 25-meter pools and 50-meter pools.

Two of Walsh’s four titles this week came in events that aren’t on the Olympic program: 50m butterfly and 100m individual medley. The 100m IM also isn’t on the long course worlds program.

Short course worlds have shallower fields than the Olympics and long course worlds. Walsh won the 100m freestyle and 100m fly in the absence of the Paris Olympic gold medalists in those events.

But look at her times. She lowered the 50m fly world record from 24.38 to 23.94 (1.8% decrease), the 100m fly world record from 54.05 to 52.71 (2.5%) and the 100m IM world record from 55.98 to 55.11 (1.6%, or 2.5% if you also include her world record in that event from Oct. 18).

She also swam the second- and third-fastest times in history in the 100m free and the third-fastest time in history in the 50m free preliminary heats Saturday morning.

In 2025, expect Walsh to eye more improvements in the 50-meter pool with the World Championships in Singapore in the summer.

She made her first Olympic team in 2024 and earned four medals in Paris (100m fly silver, plus three relay medals). She also broke her first world record in the 100m fly at the Olympic Trials in June.