Gretchen Walsh is Team USA’s not-so-secret weapon at the Olympics

Walsh smashed the 100m butterfly record at U.S. Olympic trials.

There’s a new name to watch for Team USA in Olympic swimming. Gretchen Walsh has been on the radar as “the next great one” since 2019 when she dominated in freestyle and medley at the World Junior Championships, now five years later at age 21 she’s smashing world records.

Over the weekend Walsh competed in the U.S. Olympic trials in Indianapolis where she beat the record in 100m butterfly which has stood since the 2016 Olympic Games in Rio.

The record game in the second semi final, and it was after Walsh set the second-fastest time in history earlier that day in the prelims. At the end of the race she didn’t even know she went that kind of speed, bobbing up to massive applause and immediately realizing that she made history.

Walsh, a swimmer at the University of Virginia helps give Team USA one of the most fearsome lineups entering the Olympic games. With the legendary Katie Ledecky returning to the games and now Walsh the only major challenge on the horizon is set to come from Australia, long-time rivals in the sport.

That battle will be settled later this summer, but for now Walsh can just appreciate that she’s gone faster than any woman in history.