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≡ FT. LAUDERDALE OPEN ≡
The time and the place worked out perfectly for a major clash of titans at the Ft. Lauderdale Open in Florida over the weekend, topped by another world record for American star Gretchen Walsh.
The 50 and 100 m Butterfly World Champion in 2025, Walsh has owned the world record in the women’s 100 m Fly since 2024, when she won the U.S. Trials meet in 55.18, then lowered it twice in 2025, to 55.09 and 54.60. After leading the qualifying in the women’s 100 Fly, she crushed the final in 54.33, leading wire-to-wire and winning by more than four seconds!
Walsh also won the 50 m Fly in a world-leading 25.08, over former Virginia teammate Kate Douglass (25.24), the Olympic 200 m Breaststroke gold medalist.
As it turned out, Douglass dominated the women’s meet, with four wins:
● 50 m Freestyle: 24.21, beating Walsh (24.40)
● 100 m Freestyle: 53.01, with Walsh third (53.44)
● 100 m Breaststroke: 1:06.58, over Paris bronzer Mona McSharry (IRL: 1:08.66)
● 200 m Breaststroke: 2:20.94, over McSharry (2:24.82)
Not far behind was six-time Worlds gold medalist Regan Smith, who took the 100 m Back in 57.49, 200 m Fly in 2:05.00 and the 200 m Medley in 2:10.63. It took a lifetime best from Isabelle Stadden in 2:04.37 to become the no. 4 performer all-time to beat Smith in the 200 m Back in 2:04.37, with Smith at 2:06.38. Stadden was second in the 100 m Back in 57.55 and that moved her to no. 3 all-time in the event, and won the 50 m Back in 27.29, with Walsh third in 28.10.
Distance superstar Katie Ledecky was busy, winning the 800 m Free by more than 28 seconds in 8:12.68 and the 1,500 m Free in 15:25.62. Canadian star Summer McIntosh led from start to finish in the 400 m Free in 3:58.91 with Ledecky second in 3:59.02 and McIntosh also won the 200 m Free in 1:54.36, over Anna Moesch (1:56.55), Rio 2016 100 m Free co-champ Simone Manuel (1:56.80) and Ledecky (1:56.94).
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No world records on the men’s side, but France’s Leon Marchand showed he’s still on top in his four events from the Paris 2024 Olympic Games. He won the 200 m Breast by more than three seconds in 2:09.04, the 200 m Fly by 2.01 seconds in 1:53.08 and the Medleys: 200 m in 1:57.28 and 400 m Medley in 4:09.33. American Carson Foster was second in the 200 Fly and both medley races.
Hungary’s 200 m Backstroke Olympic champion, Hubert Kos, who trains in the U.S., was a triple winner, in the 50 m Back in 25.12, the 100 m Back in 1:56.37 and the 200 m Back (of course) in 1:56.37.
Olympic distance star Bobby Finke won the 800 m Free in 7:53.17, just ahead of Harvard frosh Will Mulgrew (7:53.54) and took the 400 m Free in 3:51.09, with Mulgrew at 3:59.28. But Mulgrew won the 1,500 m Free in 15:05.30 with Finke at 15:13.62. Interesting.
Ilya Kharun, now competing for the U.S., won the 50 m Fly in 22.96 with Tokyo Olympic champ Caeleb Dressel second in 23.48 and Kharun beat Dressel in the 100 m Fly, 50.87 to 51.26.
American-born Jack Kelly, who competes for Ireland, won the 50 m Breast in 27.42 and the 100 m Breast in 1:00.35, to 1:01.94 for Kos.
Chris Guiliano won the 100 m Free in 48.43; Dressel won the B-final in 48.97. Mitchell Schott won the 200 m Free in 1:46.70 with Kos second in 1:47.29.
In an off year, this was quite a meet and shows Walsh, Douglass and Marchand – among others – showed they are not slowing down any time soon.
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