SwimSwam Walsh Breaks Super-Suited World Record To Kickoff Short Course Worlds

Walsh Runs Over World Record In 50 Fly: It didn't take long for Gretchen Walsh to make an impact at her first Short Course World Championships, as the American obliterated the super-suited world record in the women's 50 fly during the opening session of racing in Budapest.

Also: Ahmed Hafnaoui is suspended for a doping rules violation, U.S. Olympian Aaron Shackell leaves Texas, and some of the highlights from the Minnesota Invite and U.S. Open.

Walsh, McIntosh Set World Records To Open SC Worlds

Gretchen Walsh had a red-hot start to the 2024 Short Course World Championships on Tuesday morning in Budapest, shattering a world record that had been on the books for 15 years.

Walsh fired off a time of 24.02 in the women's 50 butterfly, breaking the the super-suited world record of 24.38 established by Therese Alshammar in 2009.

Walsh also took down Kate Douglass' American Record of 24.42, set last month on the World Cup circuit, giving her two world records and four American Records in short course meters despite only having a handful of swims raced in the format.

In the men's 50 fly, Switzerland's Noe Ponti set a new Championship Record in a time of 21.53, just shy of his 21.50 world record set in November. The CR was initially set by Dutchman Nyls Korstanje in 21.62, which took down Nicholas Santos' 21.78 from 2022 before Ponti took it down in the final heat.

The 50 and 100-meter events will have semi-finals raced tonight, while the 200s and up will go straight to finals. Swimmers earning top seeds in events with medals on the line tonight were Summer McIntosh in the women's 400 free (3:57.55), Abbie Wood in the women's 200 IM (2:05.16) and Shaine Casas in the men's 200 IM (1:51.52), while the Italian women (3:29.86) and the U.S. men (3:05.20) hold the top seeds in the 4x100 free relay.

See a full recap of the opening prelim session here.

Day 1 Finals – find the finals live recap here.

In the first event of the night, Summer McIntosh broke the world record in the women's 400 free in a time of 3:50.25.

In the next race, the women's 50 fly semis, Gretchen Walsh did it again, breaking her hours-old world record in 23.94 to become the first women under 24 seconds.

Hafnaoui Suspended For Missed Doping Tests; Enters NCAA Transfer Portal

Tunisian Olympic champion Ahmed Hafnaoui has accepted a provisional suspension from the International Testing Agency (ITA) for whereabouts failures.

Hafnaoui was suspended after missing three anti-doping tests within a 12-month period, which could lead to a one or two-year suspension if upheld.

The other swimmer currently listed with whereabouts failures by the World Aquatics Integrity Unit, Viktoria Gunes, received a two-year suspension in 2023.

Sources told SwimSwam that Hafnaoui missed two anti-doping tests while training in America and then a third after returning home to Tunisia amidst visa issues in the United States.

He had a brief stint at Indiana University early in the 2023-24 season before moving to train in California with Mark Schubert. Due to visa issues, Hafnaoui returned to Tunisia and competed in the World Championships in February. He then withdrew from the Paris Olympics.

The news came shortly after Hafnaoui entered the NCAA transfer portal, telling SwimSwam he was considering returning to college swimming, but that nothing was imminent.

Aaron Shackell Leaves Second College Program In 12 Months

Aaron Shackell's brief stint at the University of Texas has come to an end, as the 2024 U.S. Olympian is returning to Carmel Swim Club to train after just a few months in Austin.

The departure comes one year after Shackell left Cal during the first semester of his freshman year, opting to take an Olympic redshirt season before transferring to Texas in the offseason.

“I want to express my sincere gratitude to the University of Texas, my teammates, and the incredible coaching staff," Shackell said in a statement. "The support I have received during my time here has been invaluable, and I truly appreciate all the efforts made on my behalf. After careful consideration, I have decided to continue my training with Carmel and Chris Plumb. Following a very successful summer, I believe this is the best path forward to help me perform at my highest level in the pool.

"I will always be thankful for my time at Texas and wish the program continued success.”

Like he did last year, Shackell returns to Carmel to train under coach Chris Plumb, who guided Shackell to a berth on the U.S. Olympic team last summer after he won the men's 400 freestyle at the Olympic Trials.

Despite several of Texas' swimmers showing improved performances early this season under new head coach Bob Bowman, Shackell largely struggled. Read more here.

Cal Freshmen Shine At Minnesota Invite

After the majority of midseason invitational meets wrapped up before U.S. Thanksgiving, there were a few more this past weekend, headlined by the Minnesota Invite.

The Cal Golden Bears were the top-ranked team in attendance, and it was their first-year swimmers who led the way.

Freshman Mary-Ambre Moluh showed incredible form in her first tapered meet in short course yards, as the French native set a new Cal Record in the women's 100 back, clocking 49.68 to rank 7th all-time. She also set a best times en route to the win in the 50 free (21.68), and set a PB of 47.63 in the 100 free leading off the 400 free relay after she won the individual event in 48.01.

On the men's side, first-year Golden Bear Yamato Okadome put up a time of 50.87 in the 100 breast, making him the third-fastest freshman in history.

Other standouts for Cal included Destin Lasco, who won the men's 100 free (42.59), 100 back (45.23) and 200 IM (1:42.72), and for the women, Isabelle Stadden piled up points with a win in the 200 back (1:50.93), runner-up finishes in the 100 back and 200 IM, and a fourth-place showing in the 50 free.

Quick Hits

• Although it was relatively lightly attended compared to previous editions, there were still several notable swims at the U.S. Open in Greensboro, with the likes of Rhyan White, Kennedi Dobson, Bradley Dunham, Brady Samuels and Charlie Egeland among those winning multiple events. See full coverage here.
• Hungarian freestyler David Betlehem withdrew from the Short Course World Championships just days before the event, with the national federation claiming it was due to issues with NC State, where Betlehem is currently a freshman.
• NC State coach Braden Holloway responded to those claims, issuing a lengthy statement to SwimSwam where he said the federation made multiple threats to Betlehem and teammate Bettina Fabian, putting their future in international competition representing Hungary in doubt if they didn't return from NC State. Read more here.
• Army swept Navy for the first time since 1988 on Thursday, with Black Knights freshman Johnny Crush leading the way with some blistering backstroke swims.
• The 2024 Winter Junior Championships will get underway on Wednesday and run through Saturday at two sites, with the East meet taking place in Greensboro and the West competition in Austin. Find everything you need to follow along with both meets here.
• The World Aquatics Bureau has unanimously expelled the Mexican Swimming Federation from World Aquatics membership effective November 22, 2024.
• SwimMAC Carolina has temporarily closed its facility on the Charlotte Latin School’s campus due to a parasitic outbreak of Cryptosporidiosis.

Gretchen Walsh Shatters 50 Fly World Record, 24.02

Olympic Champion Swimmer Ahmed Hafnaoui Provisionally Suspended for Doping Rules Violation

U.S. Olympian Aaron Shackell Will Leave Texas, Return Home to Train with Carmel

Hungarian Swimmer David Betlehem Withdraws from the World Championships Due to NCAA Issues

Johnny Crush Rips 44.5/1:40.2 Backstrokes As Army Sweeps Navy For First Time Since 1988

Cal’s Mary-Ambre Moluh Posts 49.68 100 BK, #4 Freshman Ever; Yamato Okadome Shines In 100 BR