Canadian swimmer Summer McIntosh narrowly missed out on the gold medal by 0.02 seconds in the women’s 200-meter individual medley at the Pan Pacific Swimming Championships. The Toronto native, a reigning Olympic and world champion, settled for silver behind China’s Yu Yiting, who set a championship record with a time of 2:07.45. American Alex Walsh claimed the bronze with a time of 2:07.66.
Yu started strong on the butterfly leg, nearly breaking the world record pace, but Regan Smith of the U.S. took the lead on the backstroke. Yu regained the lead on the breaststroke and managed to hold off McIntosh in the final meters. McIntosh won her third individual medal of the meet, adding to her gold in the 400m medley and silver in the 200m freestyle, as well as a bronze in the women’s 4x100m freestyle relay.
In her reflection on the event, McIntosh mentioned that she aimed for better outcomes in future seasons. She currently holds the world record in the event with a time of 2:05.70 set at the 2025 Canadian trials. This event marked her last individual race as a teenager.
In another exciting race, fellow Canadian Alexanne Lepage clinched the gold in the women’s 200m breaststroke, defeating 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 in 2:22.57, while South Africa’s Kaylene Corbett took the bronze in 2:22.97.
The Canadian team wrapped up the championships with a total of 13 medals, including three gold, four silver, and six bronze, marking their best performance since 1997. The U.S. led the medal standings with 50 medals, followed by Australia with 35 and Canada in third place.
In other events, Taylor Ruck set a new Canadian record in the women’s 50m freestyle, finishing fourth. Lani Pallister of Australia caused a major upset by defeating Katie Ledecky in the women’s 800m freestyle, with Ledecky settling for silver. Sam Short of Australia won the men’s 1,500 free, breaking a championship record.
The Pan Pacific Swimming Championships showcased thrilling performances and competitive races with athletes setting new records and achieving remarkable victories.