Gretchen Walsh Units World Record within the 50m Free

ROME – Virginia women’s swimming alumna Gretchen Walsh set a world record in the 50m Freestyle while competing at the Sette Colli Trophy, a three-day international meet being held June 26-28 in Rome, Italy.

Walsh set the 50m Freestyle record in Sunday’s final session, posting a 23.55.

The mark breaks the world record of 23.59 set by fellow Cavalier alum Kate Douglass, which was set eight days earlier in a meet in Indianapolis.

Walsh’s record, which was also an American record, was the 100th American record set by a Virginia swimmer since 2021.

Walsh set her first World Record on June 15, 2024, breaking the 100m Fly record at the US Olympic Trials. With this 50 Free mark, she has now broken a World Record 21 times.

Walsh opened the meet by setting an American record in the 50m Butterfly on Friday, going 24.51 in the final of the event. The time is 0.15 seconds faster than her previous mark set last year and is the second-fastest performance of all time. She won the 100m Fly on Saturday with the fifth fastest time ever, posting a 54.82.

The elite international meet features more than 700 athletes from 36 nations competing, including multiple Olympic medalists and world and European champions. Curtis is one of the 32 athletes from the Italian National Team.