Summer McIntosh won three individual gold medals a year ago at the Olympics, the star in the Paris pool alongside France’s Léon Marchand.
Apparently unsatisfied with three, she’ll go for five gold medals starting Sunday at the world swimming championships in Singapore. Call it a trial run for the Los Angeles Olympics in 2028.
The worlds is the highest profile swim meet since last year’s Olympics, a showcase for newcomers as well veterans who hope to stick around until Los Angeles.
McIntosh will be very busy during the eight days in the pool, packing her schedule with five individual events. She’ll contend with prelims in some events, and she’ll also add relays.
“This means 14 or 15 races she could swim in eight days, demanding races,” Canada’s head coach Iain McDonald told The Associated Press. “It’s a very challenging schedule she’s set for herself.”
The 18-year-old Canadian set three world records in five days in June at the national trials. She broke her own 400-meter individual medley mark, dropping it to 4 minutes, 23.65 seconds, and set the 200 IM record (2:05.70) and the 400 freestyle record (3:54.18).
She was also a mere half-second behind the 200 butterfly record, which has stood since 2009, and just off the 800 freestyle record set last month by American Katie Ledecky.
“She’s such a versatile athlete, it’s kind of tough to nail what her best events are,” McDonald said. “She’s pretty good right across the spectrum.”
Opening day
McIntosh will be the focus on Day 1 of the pool events in Singapore. She swims the 400 freestyle final, and comes back about 30 minutes later for a semifinal of the 200 IM.
Despite holding the world record in the 400 free, she’s never won gold in the event at the Olympics or worlds. This time she’s ready, and credits coach Fred Vergnoux.
“I’m super pumped for the 400 freestyle and I’m really excited to see how I manage doing the double,” McIntosh told Canadian broadcaster the CBC.
McIntosh said Vergnoux has boosted her endurance, pointing more to distance events.
“It’s true that I haven’t been able to do it on world stage yet,” she said of the 400. “I think going into past big meets I haven’t had the confidence in my training and my freestyle in general — technique-wise and endurance-wise — that I have now.”
Ariarne Titmus was the gold medalist in Paris with silver for McIntosh, but the Australian swimmer is taking a year off. It’s Titmus’s record that McIntosh just broke. Ledecky, the bronze medalist in Paris, appears to be McIntosh’s chief rival.
McIntosh will also face Ledecky in the 800, which might be the only race where McIntosh is not favored. It’s probably 50-50, and it might be the biggest race of the championships.
Ledecky set the world record this year of 8:04.12, and McIntosh is right behind, having clocked 8:05.07.
“I think she loves it (the challenge),” Greg Meehan, the US team director, said of Ledecky. “There are always threats coming at you because you’ve set yourself to be the gold standard.”
McIntosh dominates the two IM races, and should also be a favorite in the 200 butterfly.
Ledecky’s best race is the 1,500 where she holds the world record and also has the 23 top times in history in the event — and No. 25, too. McIntosh is not in the field here.
McIntosh, who will swim this fall under Bob Bowman at the University of Texas at Austin, arrived on the scene aged 14 at the Tokyo Olympics in 2021, finishing fourth in the 400 free.
“She’s been such a strong performer through her entire career at such a young age,” McDonald said. “But she always manages to surprise you, upping her game a little bit.”
Attention on Yu
Some of the attention in Singapore will be on 12-year-old Chinese swimmer Yu Zidi. Yu has qualified in the 200 and 400 IMs and the 200 butterfly and could face McIntosh in all three finals. Unbelievably, she could win a medal — at 12.
Yu’s time of 2:10.63 in the Chinese championships in May was the fastest by any 12 year old — female or male — in history. She’s also swum 2:06.83 in the 200 fly and 4:35.53 in the 400 IM. Both of those times would have been good for fourth place in last year’s Olympics.
Astoundingly, Yu is 12 to 15 seconds faster than McIntosh was at age 12, depending on the event. That’s roughly a half-lap of a 50-meter pool.
“There is always somebody coming up next,” McDonald said.
McIntosh goes for 5 individual golds at world championships with Los Angeles Olympics in sight
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McIntosh goes for 5 individual golds at world championships with Los Angeles Olympics in sight
- Summer McIntosh is set to compete in five individual events at the world swimming championships in Singapore
- McIntosh broke three world records in June, including the 400-meter freestyle
Real Sociedad edge rivals Athletic to reach Copa del Rey final
- Real Sociedad have now not lost in their last 10 derby clashes at home against Athletic, whom they beat in the 2020 final, and rarely looked like letting their advantage slip
SAN SEBASTIAN, Spain: Mikel Oyarzabal slotted home a late penalty to fire Real Sociedad into the Copa del Rey final with a 1-0 win over Basque rivals Athletic Bilbao on Wednesday, securing a 2-0 aggregate semifinal triumph.
American coach Pellegrino Matarazzo has turned La Real’s fortunes around since arriving in December and his side will face Atletico Madrid in the Seville final on April 18, after they ousted Barcelona.
Already holding a 1-0 lead from the first leg at Athletic’s San Mames, Real Sociedad produced a sturdy display at the Reale Arena to knock out the 24-time winners.
“Very proud of what the boys have done, over the past two months, it’s pretty amazing,” said Matarazzo.
“Our first match was on the fourth of January... and we just reached the cup final.
“The football we’re playing is effective and we want to continue... we’re in the final and we want to win it.”
Real Sociedad have now not lost in their last 10 derby clashes at home against Athletic, whom they beat in the 2020 final, and rarely looked like letting their advantage slip.
“I think having the one goal advantage helped, we managed the tempo well,” Real Sociedad defender Jon Martin told Movistar.
“We didn’t want a lot to happen, and we did well.”
La Real had the better of a tense first half, with Carlos Soler coming closest. The midfielder’s free-kick, flying toward the top corner, was tipped over by Athletic goalkeeper Alex Padilla.
Matarazzo’s team had more of the ball and forced the visitors back, albeit without carving out many more openings.
Athletic defender Aitor Paredes made a last-ditch block to keep former Valencia midfielder Soler at bay, and Goncalo Guedes drilled into the side-netting.
Ernesto Valverde’s side improved in the second half and began to threaten La Real, again without finding a clear sight of goal.
Alejandro Berenguer fizzed a shot wide after Inaki Williams fed him on the edge of the box.
Los Leones were missing dangerous Spanish winger Nico Williams, who is sidelined indefinitely with a groin problem.
Oyarzabal seals it
The match was decided from the penalty spot when Athletic’s Inigo Ruiz de Galarreta grabbed a fistful of Yangel Herrera’s shirt as he tried to jump in the box.
After a VAR review the referee awarded a spot-kick and Spain striker Oyarzabal coolly sent Padilla the wrong way in the 87th minute.
Mikel Vesga might have levelled on the night for Athletic in stoppage time as they pushed forward with urgency but Real Sociedad stopper Unai Marrero saved well with his leg to help book his team’s flight to Andalusia.
“It was a hard-fought game, a Basque derby,” said Valverde.
“We had a clear chance at the end, we could have got back into the game but it wasn’t to be.”
Icelandic striker Orri Oskarsson could have extended La Real’s lead at the death but nodded against the post, although it did not matter in the end.
“It feels terrible, it’s a shame, we wanted to reach that final in Seville, I don’t even know what to say,” Athletic striker Williams told Movistar.
“(For the penalty) there’s that kind of grabbing in every box, every corner, and it’s very difficult (to take).”
