The World Aquatics Swimming Championships (25m) came to a spectacular close at the Duna Arena on Sunday after six thrilling days of competition that saw a record 30 World Records fall.
The final races, the Men’s and Women’s 4x100m Medley Relays, delivered a fitting finale. In the women’s relay, Regan Smith of the United States set the tone with a record-breaking backstroke lead-off leg of 54.02. Her teammates Lilly King, Gretchen Walsh, and Kate Douglass carried the momentum, finishing with a World Record of 3:40.41.
In the men’s relay, a quartet of Neutral Athletes—Miron Lifintsev, Kirill Prigoda, Andrei Minakov, and Egor Kornev—followed suit, setting a World Record of 3:18.68.
The USA claimed the Best Team Award with an impressive medal haul of 18 gold, 13 silver, and 8 bronze.
Canada ranked second with 4 golds, 5 silvers, and 6 bronzes, followed by Australia with 2 golds, 5 silvers, and 5 bronzes.
Overall, 25 countries reached the medal podium, underscoring swimming’s global appeal and competitiveness.
Nine hundred eighty-five athletes from a record 195 countries competed in 45 medal events, showcasing incredible talent over the six days.
Among the 30 World Records set, six came in relay events, highlighting the depth of teamwork and competition.
The Championships also saw 13 World Junior Records, 46 Championship Records, and 63 Continental Records fall.
The rewriting of the record books started early. During the first-day prelims, Gretchen Walsh of the United States first stormed to an individual World Record of 24.02 in the Women’s 50m Butterfly heats. She ultimately recorded 11 World Records – nine individual and two in relays by Championships’ end.
In addition to America’s Douglas, Smith and Walsh, Summer McIntosh of Canada had outstanding Championships with three golds, a silver and a bronze. The 18-year-old also set three World Records and five World Junior Records in Budapest.
Noe Ponti stood out in the men’s field, winning golds in the 50m and 100m Butterfly and the 100m Individual Medley while setting three World Records.
Fittingly, Ponti and Walsh walked away with the Best Male and Best Female swimmer awards of these Championships.
In addition to medals and records, athletes were rewarded with a total prize money purse of US $2.875 million.
All World Records, including the relays, earned US $25,000 for each of their record-setting performances.
Athletes also earned $10,000 for winning a “Double Crown” by going undefeated in an event through the entire World Aquatics Swimming World Cup 2024 season and these Championships.
Across the 2024 calendar year, 319 swimmers earned $7.1 million at World Aquatics events.
Athletes earned $11.1 million at World Aquatics events in 2024, the most in the organisation’s 116-year history.