World records are some of the most exciting moments in swimming. The 2024 Short Course World Championships in Budapest was loaded with them.
How loaded?
How about 30 in one meet. While short-course worlds usually has more world records than other big-time meets, 30 is just an astounding number, especially when you figure 10 of them came from Gretchen Walsh.
With each record earning a $25,000 bonus from World Aquatics, it was a big pay day kind of week.
Here is a look back at each one (some happened on relay records) with the links back to the original story from the week in Budapest.
Regan Smith, 100 backstroke: Smith clocked a 54.02 to lead off the women’s medley relay to set the world record and sweep record performances in all three backstroke events. It also led the U.S. to the World record in the 400 medley relay, the 10th of the week for Walsh.
Regan Smith Breaks 100 Back WR, Leads Relay to WR
Neutral Athletes of Russia set the world record in the men’s medley relay and defeated the United States, 3:18.68 to 3:19.03.
Neutral Athletes of Russia Set Men’s Medley Relay World Record
Luke Hobson cut 0.30 from the 200 free WR he set earlier this week when he went 1:38.61 at the short-course worlds in Budapest in the 800 free relay.
Luke Hobson Takes Down His 200 Free WR In Budapest
Regan Smith broke the 200 back world record she set at the Singapore stop of the World Cup last month by eight tenths with a time of 1:58.04.
Regan Smith Takes Down 200 Back WR, Completes Back Sweep
Gretchen Walsh broke the WR in the 50 free. She finished in 22.83, four hundredths quicker than her semifinal world record.
Gretchen Walsh Does It Again, World Record & Gold in 50 Free
Summer McIntosh is 3-for-3 at 2024 World Short-Course Championships, in gold medals and world records. The Canadian wunderkind positively destroyed the world record in the women’s 400 individual medley, winning in 4:15.48.
Flash! Summer McIntosh Completes WR Hat Trick in 400 IM; Katie Grimes Gets AR
Jordan Crooks became the first person to crack the 20-second barrier in the short-course meters version of the 50 freestyle when he blasted to a time of 19.90.
Jordan Crooks Blasts WR, Goes Sub-20 in 50 Freestyle at Worlds
Gretchen Walsh stormed to eighth individual world record of the Short Course World Championships, this time taking down the all-time standard in the 50 freestyle. After clocking 23.02 in prelims to come within nine hundredths of the mark, Walsh swam a time of 22.87 in the final to take six hundredths off a seven-year-old mark held by the Netherlands’ Ranomi Kromowidjojo.
Gretchen Walsh Takes Down Eighth WR in 50 Free
Gretchen Walsh has completed a monstrous run through the 100 butterfly, setting world records in all three rounds and bringing the time down to 52.71 in a wire-to-wire effort in Saturday’s final.
Gretchen Walsh Takes Down 7th WR of Week For 100 Fly Gold
The U.S. had four of the five fastest legs in the entire 800 free relay. Luke Hobson went 1:38.91 off the front, a world record until he broke it in the individual event. Carson Foster, fresh off his joint silver medal in the 400 free, went 1:40.77. The man he shared it with, Kieran Smith, brought it home in 1:40.49. In between was a 1:40.34 split from 200 individual medley gold medalist Shaine Casas. The Americans’ time of 6:40.51 undercuts the nation’s winning time from Melbourne in 2022 of 6:44.12 as the meet and world record.
Budapest 2024, Day 4: Luke Hobson Downs 200 Free WR in 800 FR win
Regan Smith’s clocking of 25.23 in the 50 backstroke established a world record and bettered the previous global standard of Canadian Maggie Mac Neil (25.25) from 2022.
FLASH! Regan Smith Clips World Record in 50 Backstroke
Kate Douglass lowered her 200m breaststroke world record to 2:12.50 as she became the first woman to defend the title at the short-course worlds in Budapest.
Kate Douglass Downs Her 200m Breast WR In Title Defence
Summer McIntosh set a world record of 1:59.32 in the 200 fly in Budapest as she lowered Mireia Belmonte’s 2014 mark set when the Canadian was eight years old.
Summer McIntosh Sets World Record In 200 Fly
Kate Douglass lowered the 200IM world record that had stood since 2014 as en-route to gold at the short-course worlds in Budapest. The USA swimmer went 2:01.63 to take 0.23 from the time of 2:01.86 that had stood to Katinka Hosszu since the 2014 edition in Doha.
Kate Douglass Lowers 200IM WR En-Route To Gold In Budapest
Noè Ponti lowered the 50 fly WR to 21.32 as he sliced 0.11 from his own standard as he became the first Swiss swimmer to claim a global title in the pool at the short-course worlds in Budapest.
Noè Ponti Blasts 50 Fly World Record In 21.32 En-Route To gold
The USA men’s 4×100 free relay lowered Italy’s WR as the first night of the short-course worlds ended in Budapest with six new global standards having been set. The quartet were inside the previous standard throughout and came home in 3:01.66 that saw them emulate their female counterparts as they claimed back-to-back WRs. Jack Alexy set a 100 free championship record of 45.05 on lead-off to take 0.11 from the 45.16 posted by Kyle Chalmers on his way to gold at Melbourne 2022.
USA Men’s 4×100 Free Relay Take Down World Record
The USA women’s 4×100 free relay took 0.42 off Australia’s WR as the records kept tumbling at the short-course worlds in Budapest. The quartet of Kate Douglass, Katharine Berkoff, Alex Shackell and Gretchen Walsh were inside WR pace throughout and came home in 3:25.01.
USA Women’s 4×100 Free Relay Crush Australia’s WR
Noè Ponti lowered his own 50 fly WR in a time of 21.43 on day one of the short-course worlds in Budapest.
Noè Ponti Takes Down His 50 Fly WR In 21.43
Gretchen Walsh lowered the 50 fly WR she set in prelims to 23.94 to become the first woman through the 24-second barrier in Budapest.
Gretchen Walsh Lowers 50 Fly Record & Goes Inside 24 Secs
Summer McIntosh shattered Li Bingjie’s 400 free world record in 3:50.25 at the World Short-Course Championships in Budapest.
Summer McIntosh Shatters 400 Free WR In Budapest
Gretchen Walsh crushed the 50 fly world record in 24.02 as she took down the standard held by Therese Alshammar since November 2009.
The length of the pool in Budapest is 24 meters