Canadian swimmer Summer McIntosh narrowly missed out on winning gold in the women’s 200-meter individual medley at the Pan Pacific Swimming Championships, finishing just 0.02 seconds behind the winner, Yu Yiting from China. Despite setting a championship record with a time of 2:07.45, McIntosh had to settle for silver, with American Alex Walsh taking the bronze in 2:07.66.
Yu Yiting started strong, being under world-record pace during the butterfly leg, but American Regan Smith briefly took the lead on the backstroke. However, Yu regained the lead during the breaststroke and managed to hold off McIntosh in a close finish.
This event marked McIntosh’s third individual medal at the championships, having previously won gold in the 400m medley and silver in the 200m freestyle. She also contributed to Canada’s bronze in the women’s 4x100m freestyle relay.
Reflecting on her performance, McIntosh expressed that while it was one of her better swims, she was not entirely satisfied with her overall performance at the meet. As the world record-holder in the event, McIntosh aims to use this experience to improve in the upcoming season.
In another event, Canadian Alexanne Lepage clinched gold in the women’s 200m breaststroke, outperforming reigning Olympic champion Kate Douglass. Lepage led the race from start to finish, setting a personal best time of 2:21.73. Douglass finished second with a time of 2:22.57, followed by Kaylene Corbett from South Africa in third place with a time of 2:22.97.
The Canadian team concluded the championships with a total of 13 medals, including three gold, four silver, and six bronze medals. This marked Canada’s most successful performance at the Pan Pacific Championships since 1997, with the United States leading the overall medal standings.
In other notable results, Taylor Ruck set a new Canadian record in the women’s 50m freestyle, finishing fourth in a highly competitive final where Kate Douglass set a world record with a time of 23.19.
The championships also saw Australian swimmer Lani Pallister defeat Katie Ledecky in the women’s 800m freestyle, marking Ledecky’s first international loss in the event. Pallister set a new championship record with a time of 8:06.10, while Ledecky secured the silver medal with a time of 8:07.26.
Overall, the Pan Pacific Swimming Championships showcased impressive performances from swimmers across different countries, with records broken and new talents emerging on the international stage.
