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≡ WORLD 25 m CHAMPIONSHIPS ≡
The onslaught of world records at the 2024 World Aquatics 25 m (short-course) Championships continued on Saturday, with six more marks, including two more from American star Gretchen Walsh:
● Men/50 m Freestyle: 20.08, Jordan Crooks (CAY) in heat 10
● Men/50 m Freestyle: 19.90, Jordan Crooks (CAY) in semi 2
● Men/100 m Butterfly: 47.71, Noe Ponti (SUI)
● Women/50 m Freestyle: 22.87, Gretchen Walsh (USA) in semi 2
● Women/ 100 m Butterfly: 52.71, Gretchen Walsh (USA)
● Women/400 m Medley: 4:15.48, Summer McIntosh (CAN)
Walsh won her fourth individual event on Saturday, opening with a third world record in the women’s 100 m Fly in 52.71, dropping her own mark of 52.87 from the semifinals. This was the first meet she had ever tried the event and she got three world records in three rounds of swimming. A distant second was Tessa Giele (NED) in 54.66.
Walsh came back to get another world record in the semifinals of the women’s 50 m Free, touching in 22.87 in the second semi, taking down Dutch star Ranomi Kromowidjojo’s 22.93 from 2017 (and she received her gold medal from Kromo in the victory ceremony!). Fellow American Kate Douglass was the no. 2 qualifier, winning semi one in 23.35. The final is on Sunday.
Walsh’s world records in these events also had world marks on the men’s side!
The men’s 100 m Fly was the second world record of the meet for Swiss Noe Ponti, already the 50 m Fly and 100 m Medley winner, in 47.71, eclipsing American Caeleb Dressel’s 47.70 mark from 2020. Ponti won easily, with Maxime Grousset (FRA: 48.57) second; Dare Rose of the U.S. was eighth in 49.37.
In the men’s 50 m Free semis, Jordan Crooks of the Cayman Islands – third in the 100 m Free – raced to a world record in the morning heats at 20.08, removing Dressel’s 20.16 from 2020. Then Crooks went wild in the semis, becoming the first to break 20 seconds, at 19.90 in semi two. He’s the overwhelming favorite in Sunday’s final. Jack Alexy of the U.S., the 100 Free winner, won semi one in 20.51.
Canada’s McIntosh had already won the women’s 400 m Free and 200 m Fly in world-record times, and added her best event, the 400 m Medley with another world mark of 4:15.48. She destroyed the 2017 mark of 4:18.94 by Spain’s Mireia Belmonte Garcia and won by 4.66 seconds over American Katie Grimes (4:20.14). Incredible, frankly.
The men’s 400 m Free final went to Russian “neutral” Ilia Borodin in 3:56.83, ahead of American Carson Foster (3:5745); Trenton Julian of the U.S. was eighth in 4:05.81. The men’s 800 m Free was won by Zalan Sarknay (HUN) in 7:30.56, beating German star Florian Wellbrock (7:31.90).
The final event of the session was new for these championships, a Mixed 4×100 m Medley, with no official world record to be set, but a world’s best time. The Russian “neutral” team got control of the race early, with Miron Lifintsev, Kirill Prigoda, Arina Surkova and Daria Klepikova winning in 3:30.47.
The U.S. was eighth after the first two legs from Regan Smith and Lilly King, and eighth after Rose finished on the Fly leg. But Alexy moved hard on the Free leg (44.63!) and closed to within 0.08, but not quite enough.
Smith’s opening 100 m Back leg was timed in 54.19 and as an opening leg (from a standard start), is faster than her world mark of 54.27 and should be recognized. But there was no notation on the official results, or the records lists.
So, only one more day to do in this record-shattering meet, with the U.S. now at 30 medals (14-11-5), ahead of Canada (13: 4-3-6) and Australia (11: 2-4-5). And Walsh will be back in action in the women’s 40 m Free and the Medley Relay!
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