Gretchen Walsh: The Rising Star Making Waves as Ultra Swimmer of the Month!

Ultra Swim Swimmer of the Month is an ongoing feature on SwimSwam, illuminating a swimmer from the U.S. who has distinguished themselves over the previous month. This accolade, like any other form of recognition, is inherently subjective and aims to spotlight one athlete whose achievements are remarkable – potentially a swimmer who has notably excelled compared to peers, or one whose feats may have been overlooked amidst other prominent performances. If your preferred athlete wasn’t acknowledged, you are encouraged to graciously commend them in our comments section.

Gretchen Walsh‘s remarkable showing at the Short Course World Championships designates her as the definitive Ultra Swimmer of the Month for December.

Following a record-breaking short course meter debut in October, Walsh established new women’s SCM world records within a span of six days in Budapest.

The 21-year-old athlete claimed a total of 11 world records over six events, securing seven gold medals during the championships.

Walsh shattered the world record three times in the women’s 100 fly, twice in each of the women’s 50 free, 50 fly, and 100 IM, while also adding two more historical records as part of the U.S. women’s 4×100 free and 4×100 medley relay teams.

With gold medals in all six races, she earned a seventh in the women’s 100 free, registering a time of 50.31, marking the second-fastest swim ever, just six hundredths of a second shy of the world record held by Cate Campbell (50.25).

Below, you will find a comprehensive list of Walsh’s world record swims, showcasing their standings now in comparison to their status prior to the Short Course Worlds (as initially detailed in The Gretchen File article).

World Record Swims – 11

Initial Standards vs Current Records

Walsh’s accumulation of gold medals ranks #2 in history, following American Olivia Smoliga, who secured eight world titles at the 2018 SC World Championships in Hangzhou.

Walsh received the accolade of Swimmer of the Meet after delivering one of the best performances ever recorded. With an impressive tally of world records and her seven gold medals, she departed with an astonishing $290K in award money.

Below, discover Walsh’s complete schedule from Short Course Worlds, which included 18 swims over the span of six days.

• 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

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