18-year-old Summer McIntosh made history at the Southern Zone South Sectional Championships in Plantation, Florida, on Thursday night by breaking a Canadian and Commonwealth record in the women’s 800-metre freestyle. McIntosh completed the race in 8 minutes, 9.86 seconds, marking the 10th-fastest time ever recorded in the event. American Katie Ledecky holds the top nine fastest times, including the world record of 8:04.79.
McIntosh’s remarkable time on Thursday would have earned her Olympic gold in Paris just seven months ago. She skipped the event at the Olympics to focus on a challenging schedule that featured four individual events.
Notably, McIntosh became the first Canadian athlete to win three gold medals at a single Games, whether winter or summer.
The 800m freestyle has long been dominated by Katie Ledecky, but McIntosh’s emergence is challenging that reign. At the same event last year, McIntosh defeated Ledecky in a head-to-head race, shedding 10 seconds off her previous best to set a national record of 8:11.39, surpassing Ledecky’s 8:17.12. Ledecky, who has held the Olympic gold in this event for the past four Games, opted not to compete in the 800m freestyle at this year’s meet.
The year 2024 was a standout one for McIntosh. She was named Northern Star Athlete of the Year in Canada after claiming four Olympic medals, including three golds. She also achieved numerous world, world junior, Canadian, and Commonwealth records and was honored as World Aquatics Female Swimmer of the Year.
This event marks McIntosh’s return to competition since the World Aquatics Short Course Championships in Budapest this past December, where she achieved three world records, three gold medals, one silver, and one bronze.
Source: Swifteradio.com
