Summer McIntosh grabs second swimming world record in five days, breaking Katinka Hosszu's 400m IM mark
The 16-year-old's remarkable streak at Canadian swim trials in Toronto continued as she added the 400m individual medley mark on Saturday to her 400m freestyle record set on Tuesday.
Swimming
Summer McIntosh is unstoppable at the moment. The Canadian swimmer claimed her second world record in five days on Saturday (1 April), taking nearly half a second off Katinka Hosszu's seven-year-old 400m individual medley record at the 2023 Canadian Swimming Trials.
Fans in Toronto were treated to a masterclass from McIntosh, who touched the wall in 4:25.86, 0.49 seconds faster than Hosszu's mark set at the Olympic Games Rio 2016 – and nearly three seconds quicker than her own previous personal best world junior record.
The 16-year-old had already broken the 400m freestyle world record on Tuesday, meaning in the span of a week she has scrubbed both Hosszu's and Ariarne Titmus's names off the record books in these events. McIntosh becomes the first person - female or male - to hold world records in both the 400 IM and 400 free (long-course metres).
McIntosh began the race strongly, and found herself ahead of the world-record split through the opening two legs before she fell behind Hosszu's time on the breaststroke. However, a rapid 29.69 split on the last 50m of freestyle saw the Florida-based McIntosh beat the mark.
"I've been hoping to get a world record, especially in the 400 IM, since I was probably 11 years old," McIntosh said afterwards. "To now actually achieve it is something that kind of blows my mind."
McIntosh's official personal best time in the event has now been lowered from 4:34.86 to 4:25.87 in the space of a year. The latest mark is subject to ratification by World Aquatics.
As the reigning world champion in the event, McIntosh is the runaway favourite to retain her title later this year at the World Aquatics Championsips in Fukuoka, Japan, following this performance.
Hosszu is the only other woman to have gone under 4:28 in the 400m individual medley, while the only other active swimmers to have clocked a sub-4:32 are current Olympic champion Ohashi Yui of Japan (4:30.82 in 2018), Mireia Belmonte of Spain (4:31.21 in 2013), and Australia's Kaylee McKeown (4:31.74 in 2022).
This latest achievement caps a fantastic Canadian Trials for McIntosh, who also lowered her own 200m individual medley and 200m butterfly world junior records during the meet.
The most difficult choice for the aquatic prodigy going forward could be which events to focus on given her impressive versatility.
A heavyweight clash in the 400m free with Titmus and Katie Ledecky could be on the cards in Fukuoka, while McIntosh is also the defending world champion in the 200 fly.
McIntosh's triumphs last year at the 2022 World Championships in Budapest aged just 15 made her the youngest individual world champion in swimming since Ye Shiwen in 2011.