Summer MCINTOSH

In March 2023, the Canadian prodigy scored her first win over Ledecky in the 200m freestyle at the Fort Lauderdale Pro Swim Series, lowering her own world junior record and breaking Taylor Ruck's national record. Weeks later, she broke two world records at the Canadian World Championship trials, first eclipsing Titmus' 400m freestyle world record and then Katinka Hosszu's 400 I.M. mark from the Rio 2016 Olympic Games.

In her second World Championships in Fukuoka, while still 16, McIntosh took 200m freestyle bronze in a new world junior record behind Mollie O'Callaghan's world record swim and Tokyo 2020 gold medallist Titmus. She retained her 200m butterfly title - breaking her own world junior record - to become the first Canadian swimmer to win two world titles in the same event. McIntosh then scored another repeat win in the 400m I.M., this time in a new championship record.

At the end of 2023, McIntosh defeated Ledecky in the 400 free at the U.S. Open Championships. She also beat the American over 800m in February 2024, ending Ledecky's unbeaten run in the event stretching back to 2010, although she has since said she will concentrate on shorter distances at Paris 2024.

While she is a medal threat in freestyle, McIntosh has proven herself to be a cut above in the 200m butterfly and 400 I.M. as she seeks a first Olympic title in the French capital.

2024: Olympic debut and beyond

McIntosh’s 2024 season further confirmed her status as one of the brightest stars in competitive swimming.

Skipping the World Aquatics Championships to focus on the Paris Olympics, McIntosh nonetheless made headlines early in the Olympic year by defeating Katie Ledecky in the 800m freestyle at a sectional event, a feat no swimmer had accomplished since 2010. Her time of 8:11.39 also set a new Canadian record.

McIntosh’s form peaked at the Canadian Olympic trials, where she shattered her own world record in the 400m individual medley with a time of 4:24.38 and posted world-leading times in several other events, setting the stage for her Olympic debut in Paris, 17 years old at the time.

At the 2024 Paris Olympics, McIntosh made history with a dazzling array of performances. She opened her campaign with a silver medal in the 400m freestyle, followed by her first Olympic gold in the 400m individual medley, where she outpaced the field by over five seconds.

Her golden streak continued with an Olympic record-breaking win in the 200m butterfly, making her the first Canadian woman to claim two individual Olympic golds and the first swimmer to medal in three individual events at a single Olympic Games.

McIntosh capped her triumph with another gold in the 200m individual medley, bringing her total to three historic Olympic titles in Paris. Though narrowly missing the podium in all three relays, she tied Penny Oleksiak’s record for the most medals won by a Canadian at a single Olympics.

Named co-flagbearer for Canada at the closing ceremony, McIntosh returned home celebrated as a national icon and a global swimming sensation.