Only 80 days ago, they were standing in the same line on the podium with their silver medals from the Paris Olympics. It was a memorable day in the swimming history of the University of Virginia. After all, the swimmers, Gretchen Walsh and Kate Douglass share a firm bond with the institution. Gretchen is a fourth-year student, whereas Douglass stands to be an alumna. And both of them train under the careful watch of Todd DeSorbo, the head coach of the Virginia Cavaliers swim team at the UV. The duo snagged a bunch of Olympic medals in the bustling French city. But now they are thousands of miles away from each other. However, distance has shown to be ineffective because what they excel at is destroying pool records, which they are now doing.

Kate Douglass is in Shanghai now, representing Team USA in the Swimming World Cup 2024. In contrast, Walsh is swimming for the Cavaliers in competitions in the United States. Yet the duo has decided to make the sport far more scintillating. The first shot came from Douglass in Shanghai. In the 100m IM short course event, she took 56.99 seconds to claim the American record in the event. However, before that, she had already topped the women’s 200m breaststroke event. Brave attempts in just 24 hours! What do you think? But a few moments later, news came from the other side of the world. 

It was game day between the Virginia Cavaliers and Florida, and Gretchen Walsh was there to hold the opponent. In the duel meet, she competed in four events, and in four of them, Walsh dethroned the previous records. Surprisingly, in this unbelievable show, she also lowered the hours-old record set by Kate in the 100m IM event. Gretchen replied to Douglass’ timing by setting it to 55.98 seconds. What could have been better than that? Questions like these have left admirers scratching their heads, estimating the duo’s abilities.

On X, one such chimed in with a comment, “She’s just ridiculous.”  The fan was talking about the younger Walsh sister. The emotion did not come out of the blue, but the fans found it hard to believe the timelines of the records. At first, Kate Douglass’s feat appeared to be extraordinary. Reason?

It was the first time that an American female swimmer broke the 57-second barrier in the 100m IM event. Surprisingly, only one swimmer had broken the barrier before Kate: Katinka Hosszú. Gretchen Walsh has now launched the three-person affair. Her timing in the trial event against the Gators remains the best, breaking Hosszú’s long-held record. On Friday, she entered the event after setting three domestic marks in the 50-meter backstroke, 100-meter backstroke, and 50-meter freestyle. In each of these events, Walsh’s timing stands near to the Olympic greats such as Maggi Mac Neil, Kaylee McKeown, and Abbey Weitzeil. 

Witnessing such accomplishments in just 24 hours is an incredible experience. The swimming community, including Gretchen Walsh, was caught aback by these accomplishments in just 24 hours. At the end of the day, the Nashville native shared some insights into her whole experience, which sparked even more excitement among the audience.

On Gretchen Walsh’s day out, fans feel overjoyed 

Despite Gretchen Walsh’s nail-biting fight, the Florida Gators took away the victory in Charlottesville. But the rollercoaster ride was enough to make the stakeholders feel the tremor. Gretchen Walsh had no idea of the pool’s records until she was notified. However, she felt a little down after missing the world record in the 100m backstroke event. But now she believes the target is under her radar, and she will be able to touch it soon. However, counting her entire show on Friday, Gretchen said, “It was a pretty successful four events of my day.” But that was more than enough for the fans. 

Cherishing the overall experience, someone commented, “Can Gretchen Walsh lowkey chill… I wasn’t ready for that.” Notably, three months after her successful Paris Olympics endeavor, Gretchen Walsh returned to the pools on Friday and in her opener, she stamped four records. One of those came, overpowering Kate Douglass’s hour-old record in the same event. That made one fan quip, “KD and Gretchen are tag teaming these American Records from opposite sides of the globe good lord.” Another fan penned, “Broke KD’s fresh American Records by over a second. We are living in WILD times, America!” Certainly, the duo has the potential to be the top performers in the pools.

During the first week of the swimming competitions in Paris, they won three medals. The overall number of medals is eight, with each contributing four apiece. What else should it be termed if not complete control over the events they participate in? A topic for discussion in the coming days. But it might be time for Kate Douglass to throw up another challenge. On that chance, a swimming enthusiast wrote, “Kate Douglass is gonna destroy the 100 IM and 200 Br World Records…she’s so close and it’s just the beginning of the season!” Gretchen Walsh may keep an eye on her senior’s performance in the coming days. However, swimming lovers may look forward to an exciting season.