In a dazzling display of human aquatic prowess, 21-year-old Gretchen Walsh, a senior at the University of Virginia, has set a new world record in the women's 100-meter butterfly at the U.S. Olympic swimming trials. Walsh clocked in at a jaw-dropping 55.18 seconds, smashing the previous record set by Sarah Sjöström in 2016 (USA Today, CNN). Now, along with her newfound fame, comes an Olympic-sized deluge of questions from her extended family group chat.

To help friends and family put things into perspective, Walsh could explain that her world record-breaking time is long enough for her cat to knock over a glass of water for no apparent reason. This victory, however, presents a challenge: answering the inevitable “How did you do it?” texts from cousins she didn’t even know she had.

Walsh's final race at the trials was just shy of her record-setting performance, as she finished at 55.31 seconds. It appears that the extra hundredth of a second needed to beat her own record might have been used to mentally prepare for the influx of congratulations and curious questions from relatives (USA Today, CNN).

Torri Huske, who finished second with a time of 55.52 seconds, will join Walsh on the U.S. Olympic team (USA Today, CNN). But for Regan Smith, who clocked in at 55.62 seconds, it was not enough to qualify (USA Today).

The U.S. Olympic swimming trials were nothing short of electrifying, drawing record attendance with 20,689 spectators on Saturday and 17,697 fans on Sunday. Clearly, witnessing a swimmer shatter a world record was slightly more thrilling than the usual Saturday night Netflix binge.

What's the secret to Walsh’s success? According to her, it’s all about execution over expectations, a nugget of wisdom she gathered from a conversation with her confidence coach (USA Today). This is a piece of advice that could indeed help people in everyday life—like when debating with oneself about finally doing the laundry.

Reflecting on her achievement, Walsh couldn’t hide her disbelief and excitement at both making the team and setting a world record (CNN). Surely, her enthusiasm will be palpable in the multiple family gatherings where she will be tasked with retelling her record-setting performance. One can only hope her relatives know how to restrain themselves from endless queries—or at least stick to simpler questions like, "What's your favorite breakfast?"

As Walsh gears up for the Tokyo Olympics, she has the mighty responsibility of representing her country while simultaneously managing the ceaseless curiosity from her family. Whether it’s Aunt Karen bombarding her with emoji-filled messages or Uncle Bob attempting to crash the Olympic trials via a poorly-timed video call, Gretchen Walsh is clearly swimming in more than just water these days.

Although her Olympic journey has just begun, Gretchen Walsh has already garnered admiration from peers and spectators alike, as well as an honorary spot as the family WhatsApp group chat MVP. In an era where feel-good news is a rare commodity, Walsh’s achievement serves as a timely reminder that incredible feats are always within reach—even if they last just under 56 seconds.

For those planning to witness Walsh’s performance at the upcoming Olympics, be sure to grab your popcorn and a timer. For her family members? Perhaps stick to questions that don’t require a TED Talk-level explanation.

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