The Dominance of Gretchen Walsh in the 100 Butterfly (Percentage Difference)
There are multiple ways to recognize the greatness of Gretchen Walsh in the 100-meter butterfly. One angle is to appreciate the fact that she owns the 13-fastest times in the history of the event, highlighted by five trips to sub-55 territory. That statistic reveals Walsh’s dominance and consistency. But there is another data point that honors Walsh’s excellence.
On Saturday night, Walsh shattered her own world record in the 100 butterfly, clocking 54.33 at the Fort Lauderdale Open. While Walsh sliced .27 off her previous standard, also set at the Fort Lauderdale Aquatic Center, she also moved more than a second faster than history’s No. 2 performer. Sweden’s Sarah Sjostrom, the 2016 Olympic champ in the event, sits second in the all-time rankings, thanks to a performance of 55.48.
Walsh now sits 2.09% faster than Sjostrom, which is an absurd difference in a sport that is typically defined by miniscule amounts of time. However, Walsh has turned her back on that notion, taking the 100 butterfly into a different stratosphere. As wild as it might sound, Walsh could threaten the 54-second barrier before long – perhaps as early as this summer’s Pan Pacific Championships.
Here is a glance at the largest gaps between the world-record holder and history’s No. 2 performer.
Women’s 100 Butterfly
World-Record Holder: Gretchen Walsh (United States) – 54.33
No. 2 Performer: Sarah Sjostrom (Sweden) – 55.48
Percentage Difference: 2.09%
Men’s 100 Breaststroke
World-Record Holder: Adam Peaty (Great Britain) – 56.88
No. 2 Performer: Qin Haiyang (China) – 57.69
Percentage Difference: 1.41%
Women’s 1500 Freestyle
World-Record Holder: Katie Ledecky (United States) – 15:20.48
No. 2 Performer: Simona Quadarella (Italy) – 15:31.79
Percentage Difference: 1.22%
Men’s 200 Individual Medley
World-Record Holder: Leon Marchand (France) – 1:52.69
No. 2 Performer: Ryan Lochte (United States) – 1:54.00
Percentage Difference: 1.15%
Women’s 400 Individual Medley
World-Record Holder: Summer McIntosh (Canada) – 4:23.65
No. 2 Performer: Katinka Hosszu (Hungary) – 4:26.36
Percentage Difference: 1.02%
