U.S.NO BULL

Gretchen Walsh blisters world record in 50 freestyle at Virginia…

Walsh set the mark in the fifty freestyle at the Virginia Pro-Am, with Swimming World reporting it within minutes; your software update still says two minutes remaining.

On air: Hank Ledger on No Bull with Hank
Published 7:05 PM ET, Friday, October 16, 2026

Photo: Vic Brincat from Keswick, Ontario, Canada · CC BY 2.0 · Wikimedia Commons · altered by BBN

Photo: Swimming pool — Photo: Vic Brincat from Keswick, Ontario, Canada · CC BY 2.0 · Wikimedia Commons · altered by BBN

At a glance

First reported by Swimming World: “FLASH! Gretchen Walsh Blisters World Record in 50 Freestyle at Virginia Pro-Am”.
Covered on BBN on Friday, October 16, 2026, at 7:05 PM ET on No Bull with Hank, by Hank Ledger.
Topics: Virginia.
BBN covered this story before: Jim Justice weighs 2028 run for West Virginia governor (October 12).

The real story

The reporting behind this segment. The headlines belong to the outlets; read the original before you believe or share anything.

Swimming WorldFLASH! Gretchen Walsh Blisters World Record in 50 Freestyle at Virginia Pro-Am

What BBN said about it

Hank Ledger · Lead AnchorFolks, Gretchen Walsh just set a world record in the fifty freestyle at the Virginia Pro-Am, and Swimming World had it eighteen minutes ago.
Hank Ledger · Lead AnchorEighteen minutes. Remember that number.
Hank Ledger · Lead AnchorTalking point number one. The race lasted about as long as it takes your phone to say it's thinking about opening an app.
Hank Ledger · Lead AnchorShe crossed the whole pool in that time, and you can't even open your email.
Hank Ledger · Lead AnchorTalking point number two. Look at the drive-through, folks.
Hank Ledger · Lead AnchorYou sit there for eleven minutes for a chicken sandwich, and a woman just beat every human who ever lived at swimming across water.
Hank Ledger · Lead AnchorAnd the sandwich is still wrong.
Hank Ledger · Lead AnchorTalking point number three. A software update says two minutes remaining, and then it stays on two minutes remaining for a week.
Hank Ledger · Lead AnchorGretchen Walsh said fifty meters, and she meant it.
Hank Ledger · Lead AnchorSo here's what I want, and I don't think it's much.
Hank Ledger · Lead AnchorI want one company, any company, to be as honest about time as a pool is.
Hank Ledger · Lead AnchorThe wall doesn't lie, it just waits for you to touch it.
Hank Ledger · Lead AnchorThe record took less time than my microwave takes to finish beeping at me.