Gretchen Walsh sent a strong message to the swimming world with her performance at the Fort Lauderdale Pro Series, setting world records in the 100 butterfly and 50 fly.
What happened?
On her first meet as an official professional swimmer, Walsh broke her own world record in the 100 butterfly, finishing with a time of 54.60.
She also joined Sarah Sjostrom as the only swimmers to ever break 25 in the 50 fly, lowering her own American record.
Why it matters for Gretchen Walsh
Walsh's improvement on the back half of the 100 butterfly was notable, with her homecoming split of 29.32 being four tenths quicker than she swam when she first broke the world record last June.
This improvement could be a key factor in her upcoming competitions, including the Long Course Worlds.
What comes next?
With her recent performance, Walsh has become the clear world-title favorite in the 50 fly, although she still has a long way to go to catch Sjostrom's world record of 24.43.
Walsh also dipped under 53 seconds for the first time in the 100 freestyle, holding off Torri Huske, the Olympic silver medalist in the race, at the finish by five hundredths.
And with her world-leading times in the 50 free and 100 freestyle, Walsh is poised to make a strong showing at the Long Course Worlds.
But Walsh still needs to work on building her endurance to hold her speed throughout the 50-meter length, particularly down the back stretch.
So far, her efforts have been paying off, with Walsh returning to Charlottesville, Va., with the world's fastest times for 2025 in all four of her main events.
With the Long Course Worlds approaching, Walsh's performance at the Fort Lauderdale Pro Series has set her up as a top contender, and she will look to continue her dominance in the pool.