The U.S. women continued their domination at the 2024 Paris Olympics on Sunday with a world-record performance in the medley relay.
Regan Smith, Lilly King, Gretchen Walsh, and Torri Huske finished the 4×100-meter medley relay at 3:49.63, breaking the previous record of 3:37.58 set by Great Britain at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics. The U.S. women were also more than three seconds faster than Australia, which came in second.
This was the eighth golden medal for Team USA in swimming at the 2024 Paris Olympics, propelling them to the top of the charts after the swimming events concluded. Overall, U.S. swimmers won a total of 28 medals, 10 more than second-placed Australia.
Entering the medley relay, Team USA and Australia were tied with seven gold medals apiece in swimming, giving another competitive edge to the event.
“It matters because we like to win. But we’re just here to race and do what we do best,” King said after the event.
U.S. men, on the other hand, delivered a disappointing medley relay performance that saw them finish with a silver medal behind gold medal winners China. This was the first and only time in Olympic history that U.S. men didn’t win the gold in the event, excluding the 1980 Olympics, which the United States boycotted.
