Summer McIntosh clinched a gold medal on Thursday night, securing her first-ever victory at the Pan Pacific swimming competition by outpacing Australia’s Jenna Forrester in the women’s 400-meter individual medley in Irvine, California. The Toronto-based athlete set a championship record time of four minutes and 28.01 seconds, finishing the butterfly, backstroke, breaststroke, and freestyle. Forrester settled for silver, nearly three seconds behind, with a time of 4:31.50, while Agostina Hein from Argentina claimed the bronze with a time of 4:32.54.
Elizabeth Beisel of the United States had held the previous Pan Pacs record time of 4:31.99 since 2014. McIntosh, speaking to CBC’s Devin Heroux after the race, expressed her satisfaction with her performance. She acknowledged that her butterfly stroke felt controlled earlier in the day during the heats, aiming to replicate that in the final. Despite feeling she could have done better, McIntosh was pleased to secure the gold for Canada.
Following the race, the crowd of young spectators erupted with excitement as the Canadian national anthem played, and McIntosh interacted with them, noting the joy of giving them a show and being part of their experience. In a subsequent relay race, McIntosh helped propel Canada to a bronze medal alongside her teammates.
In the men’s 400 IM, Tristan Jankovics and Lorne Wigginton from Canada finished 7th and 8th respectively, while Japan’s Tomoyuki Matsushita set a new championship record. Meanwhile, Taylor Ruck of Canada secured a fifth-place finish in the women’s 100 freestyle event.
The event also saw University of Calgary swimmer Alexanne Lepage achieving a personal best in the women’s 100 breaststroke, narrowly missing the Canadian record. Canadian swimmers delivered varied performances across different events, with notable achievements and close finishes observed throughout the competition.
The Pan Pacific Swimming Championships continued to showcase top-level competition, with athletes from various countries competing fiercely for medals and records, setting the stage for more exciting races in the days ahead.