World Female Relay of the Year: United States Medley Relay Capped Olympic Games in Style
As the athletes were called from the ready room for the final event of the Olympic Games in Paris, there was reason for the United States to feel upbeat. Its women’s 400-meter medley relay was without weakness, a claim no other nation could make, and less than four minutes was all that separated Team USA from placing an exclamation point on action in La Defense Arena.
The Red, White and Blue came through in style.
With the arena rocking, the American quartet of Regan Smith, Lilly King, Gretchen Walsh and Torri Huske blasted a world record of 3:49.63 to cut nearly a second off the previous standard, the 3:50.40 by the U.S. at the 2019 World Championships. The performance has earned the squad Swimming World’s Female World Relay of the Year recognition.
Of the four athletes the United States leaned on for the medley relay, Smith (100 backstroke), Walsh (100 butterfly) and Huske (100 freestyle) claimed silver medals in individual competition. Meanwhile, King tied for fourth in the 100 breaststroke, just .01 off the podium. Obviously, the U.S. featured a loaded lineup.
Smith opened the relay in superb fashion, as her backstroke leg of 57.28 was good for an Olympic record, and .44 quicker than what Australian Kaylee McKeown, the Olympic champ in the 100 backstroke, managed for her leadoff. Then came King, whose 1:04.90 breaststroke split was the only sub-1:05 mark in the field and propelled the United States to a commanding lead by the midway point.
Walsh and Huske wrapped up the gold medal with their own stellar outings. After Walsh popped a 55.03 split for the butterfly leg, the fastest in history, Huske anchored on freestyle in 52.42. Not only did the foursome register a world record, the team stormed to a victory of 3.48 seconds over Australia.
Given the way the American women acquitted themselves in Paris, the world-record showing was fitting. Although the United States men struggled throughout the Games, the women consistently shined in the form of 18 medals, of which five were golden. To leave the latest Games with a dominant victory was obviously pleasing, particularly with the foursome sharing familiarity as Team USA veterans.
“We brought the record down a lot,” King said. “It’s really cool to continue be a part of that relay and watch it get faster and faster and faster with pretty much the same people. It was an awesome way to cap off the meet.”
