Walsh's Rapid World Record
American Swimmer Gretchen Walsh Shatters 50 Freestyle World Record in Rome
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American swimmer Gretchen Walsh broke the women's 50m freestyle world record at the Sette Colli meet in Rome on June 28, clocking 23.55 seconds — a mark that stood just nine days after her training partner Kate Douglass set it. Associated Press reported that Douglass's record of 23.59, set in Indianapolis on June 19, barely had time to settle before Walsh swept it away by 0.04 seconds.
After the race, Walsh kept it simple. "That was, like, the best race I've ever executed," she said, according to NBC Sports. "There you go, I guess you get a world record from that." Former record holder Sarah Sjöström of Sweden finished second in 23.86.
Nine Days: How Fast the Record Changed Hands
The 50m freestyle world record had been one of swimming's most stubborn marks. Sjöström held a version of it for nearly nine years. She set her benchmark of 23.61 at the 2023 World Aquatics Championships in Fukuoka, Japan, according to SwimSwam. Then, in the span of nine days in June 2026, two Americans erased it twice.
Douglass went first, clocking 23.59 in Indianapolis on June 19. Walsh finished second that day in 23.78. Nine days later in Rome, Walsh flipped the script. She topped the prelims in 24.10, then dropped to 23.55 in the final. Douglass's reaction on Instagram was dry and good-natured: "Was fun while it lasted," she wrote, with a handshake emoji, per Associated Press.
The Virginia Training System Behind Both Records
Walsh and Douglass are not just teammates — they train in the same lane every day at the University of Virginia. Their coach, Todd DeSorbo, has built a program that has won six straight NCAA titles from 2021 to 2026, according to Virginia Athletics. UVA swimmers have set 100 American records in that same span.
SwimSwam analysts say the "teammate effect" is real. When Douglass went 23.59, it took the mystery out of the record for Walsh. She already knew she had that kind of speed — she saw it in practice. That psychological edge may have been just as important as any technical edge.
Sjöström Finishes Second — Less Than a Year After Childbirth
Sjöström's 23.86 in Rome was not a collapse. She gave birth to her son Adrian in August 2025 and returned to elite competition less than a year later. Swedish outlets, including the Sweden Herald, called her second-place finish "monstrous" given the timeline. She remains the European record holder, as both new world records belong to Americans.
"It's always more fun to break a record than to be beaten," Sjöström said, per Sweden Herald. "But I still believe I can swim very fast." At 32, she is eyeing the European Championships in Paris as her next major target.
What This Means for Swimming's Sprint Events
The US now holds the two fastest times in women's 50m freestyle history heading into the 2026 Pan Pacific Championships and the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics. That ends roughly 40 years without US dominance in this event, often called the "splash and dash" for its raw, explosive nature, according to SwimSwam.
Walsh also holds the world record in the 100m butterfly. Her sponsor deals with Arena and Celsius have grown alongside her results, per Essentially Sports. World Aquatics pays a standard $25,000 bonus for world records broken at sanctioned meets. The Rome meet was sanctioned, meaning Walsh's performance likely triggered sponsor bonuses on top of that.
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