Gretchen Walsh Could Achieve Another Huge Medal Haul in Singapore
She swam at the World Championships in 2023 and the Paris Olympics last year, but the upcoming global meet in Singapore will mark the first time Gretchen Walsh enters as an established star. Walsh finished her college career having rewritten the all-time rankings in short course yards, and she won seven gold medals at the Short Course World Championships in December, breaking four individual world records in the process.
As for long course, Walsh has set the world record in the 100 butterfly three times since last June, most recently with a stunning mark of 54.60 at the Fort Lauderdale Pro Series. That event will be her first individual race at Worlds, but the 22-year-old from Nashville has a packed schedule with four total individual events plus likely four relays.
Expect Walsh to race on seven of the eight days of competition. Here’s what we could expect day-by-day.
Day 1: Sunday, July 27
Walsh should cruise through the first two rounds of the 100 fly before she handles a leg on the U.S. women’s 400 freestyle relay. The same foursome that won Olympic silver last year, consisting of Walsh, Torri Huske, Simone Manuel and Kate Douglass, is expected to return here, and the Americans will have a real chance at earning their first world title since 2017. Huske, Walsh and Manuel all broke 53 at U.S. Nationals while Douglass has recorded times that quick each of the past two years.
Day 2: Monday, July 28
Walsh has the morning off before she races in the 100 fly final. Although Huske ran her down to win Olympic gold by four hundredths, Walsh currently owns the fastest time in the world this year by 1.82 seconds, with Australia’s Alex Perkins sitting second at 56.42.
Day 3: Tuesday, July 29
This will be the only day off for Walsh the entire meet.
Gretchen Walsh — Photo Courtesy: Peter H. Bick
Day 4: Wednesday, July 30
No individual events for Walsh on this day, but she is highly likely to handle the butterfly leg on the U.S. mixed 400 medley relay in the final. Walsh provided a key leg on the world-record-setting team last year in Paris. There is a scenario where Walsh gets left off, if the American coaches decide to use a male swimmer on butterfly with Huske on freestyle and Regan Smith on backstroke, but in that event, Walsh would surely swim in prelims.
Day 5: Thursday, July 31
Walsh gets back to her individual schedule on this day, with the first two rounds of the 100 free.
Day 6: Friday, August 1
Here begins an extremely busy final three days for Walsh. She finished eighth in the 100 free in Paris, but she swam a best time of 52.78 at U.S. Nationals to make her the third-fastest swimmer in the world entering Worlds, with only Huske and Dutch swimmer Marrit Steenbergen ahead. This is the weakest of Walsh’s individual races, but a medal is well within her reach. She will also race the first two rounds of the 50 fly on this day, with the semifinal taking place shortly after the 100 free final.
Day 7: Saturday, August 2
After 50 free qualifying in the morning, Walsh could swim three races in the evening. In the 50 fly, she will be the strong favorite for gold after lowering the American record on multiple occasions this year, getting down to a time of 24.66 that is less than a quarter-second off the long-standing world record of Sarah Sjostrom. The last six world titles in the event have gone to Sjostrom, but she will miss this year’s meet while expecting her first child.
Walsh will also try to book her spot in the 50 free final before likely swimming for the U.S. team in the mixed 400 free relay. The Americans are favored for a medal in that event, which is not part of the Olympic schedule, and it should be a battle against Australia for gold.
Day 8: Sunday, August 3
On the final day of competition, Walsh will go for gold in the 50 freestyle after she tied the American record of 23.91 at Nationals. That time is first in the world this year and quicker than anyone except Sjostrom swam in the Olympic final. And as per custom, the 400 medley relay will conclude the meet, and Walsh will play a central role on a heavily-favored U.S. squad as she handles the butterfly leg.
Overall
Walsh has the potential to win eight medals at this meet, which would tie for most medals ever by an individual at a single World Championships. The current record belongs to American sprinter Caeleb Dressel, who claimed six gold and two silver in 2019. Ironically, Dressel raced the same slate of eight events Walsh will contest this year.
As for gold medals, it would be a surprise if Walsh did not win at least three between the sprint butterfly events and the women’s medley relay. She is also the slight favorite in the 50 free while the Americans will be in contention in all remaining relays, so it’s only the 100 free where a win would represent a significant upset. The record for gold medals is seven, achieved by Michael Phelps in 2007 and Dressel in 2017, is an extremely ambitious goal but not out of the question if Walsh and her teammates deliver exceptional relay performances.
