Three Cavaliers Win Relay Gold in Olympic Swimming Finale
PARIS – Three Virginia swimmers won gold medals in the final event of the Paris 2024 Olympic swimming competition on Sunday (August 4) at the Paris La Defense Arena in Paris, France.
Senior Gretchen Walsh, junior Emma Weber and alumna Kate Douglass all collected gold medals as the United States’s 4×100 Medley Relay won the event in a world-record time of 3:49.63.
Walsh swam the butterfly leg of the final, posting a 55.03, tying for the fastest 100 Fly split in history. Reagan Smith opened the relay by setting an Olympic record in the breaststroke, giving the US the early lead, which they continued to build on throughout the race. Lilly King and Torri Huske rounded out the foursome in the final.
The mark broke the world record of 3:50.40 set by the United States at the 2019 World Championships and passed the previous Olympic record of 3:51.60 set by Australia at the 2020 Tokyo Games.
This was Walsh and Huske’s second relay gold and world record in as many days. On Saturday night, they swam the fly and free legs in the record-setting Mixed 4×100 Medley Relay.
Weber swam the breaststroke leg in prelims and Douglass the anchor freestyle leg to also earn gold medals as relay team members.
The relay was Walsh’s second event of the day. She swam in the final of the 50 Free to start the session, finishing fourth with a time of 24.21.
Virginia swimmers leave Paris with 11 total medals (five golds, five silvers, and a bronze) earned by four swimmers.
Walsh has four medals, two golds and two silvers, helping set two relay world records and posting an Olympic record in the 100 Fly.
Douglass has four medals with two golds and two silvers, setting an Amrican record in the 200 Breast.
Paige Madden has a silver and a bronze.
This gold was Emma Weber’s first Olympic medal.
The relay gold also helped Team USA top the gold medal table in the swimming competition. The United States entered the day trailing Australia 7-6 in the gold medal tally, but a men’s win in the 1500 Free tied the two nations at seven, with the relay gold pushing the US ahead. The United States topped the total medal count with 28 to Australia’s 18.
Virginia head coach Todd DeSorbo was the head coach of the US Women’s Team, his first time serving in that capacity after being an assistant coach at Tokyo 2020. Anthony Nesty was the head coach of the men’s team.
Final Medal Tally: 11
Gold (5): 200 Breaststroke (Kate Douglass), Mixed 4×100 Medley Relay (Gretchen Walsh); 4×100 Medley Relay (Gretchen Walsh, Kate Douglass, Emma Weber)
Silver (5): 100 Fly (Gretchen Walsh), 200 IM (Kate Douglass), 4×100 Free Relay (Kate Douglass, Gretchen Walsh), 4×200 Free Relay (Paige Madden)
Bronze (1): 800 Free (Paige Madden)
Medals by Swimmer:
Gretchen Walsh: 2 Golds, 2 Silvers
Kate Douglass: 2 Golds, 2 Silvers
Paige Madden: 1 Silver, 1 Bronze
Emma Weber: 1 Gold
World Records (also Olympic and American Records)
USA (Gretchen Walsh), Mixed 4×100 Medley Relay, 3:37.43
USA (Gretchen Walsh), 4×100 Medley Relay, 3:49.63
Olympic Records
Gretchen Walsh, 100 Fly, 55.38
American Records
Kate Douglass, 200 Breast, 2:19.24
4×100 Free Relay (Gretchen Walsh, Kate Douglass), 3:30.20