'Once-in-a-generation swimmer': McIntosh breaks Canadian record on opening night of trials
15-year-old improved her own mark in 400m freestyle, racing to time of 4:01.59
Every time 15-year-old Canadian swimming superstar Summer McIntosh hits the water it's a must-see event.
Since last June when she catapulted onto the national scene with her staggering performances at the Olympic trials and followed that up with strong Olympic performances, McIntosh has continued to up the ante by lowering her times in the pool.
And she didn't disappoint on opening night of the national swimming trials at Saanich Commonwealth Place in Victoria.
Her time of 4:01.59 is the third-fastest time in the world this year.
"I'm quite happy with that. Going into the race I didn't really expect a certain time. I didn't really know what I was capable of," McIntosh told CBC Sports after the race.
"I'm pretty happy with that. Dropping some time off my Olympic race."
WATCH l McIntosh breaks own Canadian record in women's 400m freestyle:
Her record-setting performance comes just a little more than a month after she swam the third-fastest time ever in the 400m IM during an invitational trials prep event at the beginning of March.
This is the trend now — McIntosh is shaving time off each event she competes in at a staggering rate.
Asked if she's surprised by her meteoric ascension in the swimming world, McIntosh shyly suggested she was but then pointed to all the work she's been doing to get to this point.
"In some races I know my training will reflect the performances. I know what I'm capable of after all the hard work I've done," she said.
And she's just getting started at the trials. McIntosh has a busy schedule this week with the 200m freestyle, 200m butterfly and 400m IM events still ahead of her.
"I'm really excited for the rest of my races. I have a pretty big schedule but as long as I take good care of myself and prepare myself well and recover well, I'll hopefully do good," McIntosh said.
'We'll continue to see great things'
Longtime CBC Sports swimming analyst Byron MacDonald was inside Saanich Commonwealth Place Tuesday night for McIntosh's performance and had the highest praise for the phenom from Toronto.
"Summer is a once-in-a-generation swimmer. You don't see this very often and they're very special. And she's going to get better and better and better," MacDonald said.
"You have to remember, she's young. So she's going to improve by getting older and stronger and fitter and better. That's what we're seeing everytime she hits the water. It's unbelievable."
MacDonald says Canadians should get used to seeing these record-setting results from McIntosh for years to come.
"Summer knows where she is in the world. She knows who's ahead of her. She knows who's behind her. She is a very aware young woman and she will challenge herself to be one of the best," he said.
"There's no question we'll continue to see great things."
WATCH l Knox lowers his national record in men's 200m IM:
McIntosh was the youngest member of the Canadian team last summer at the Tokyo 2020 Olympic but she certainly didn't show her age on the world's grandest athletic stage.
McIntosh finished fourth in the 400m freestyle, at that point lowering the Canadian record twice. She placed ninth in the 200m freestyle and 11th in the 800m free, setting a national age group record. She was also part of the 4x200m freestyle team that finished fourth in Canadian record time. Her opening-leg swim broke the Canadian age group record.
McIntosh, who trains at the High Performance Centre in Ontario, is soaking up the experience of being around teammates who push her every day while at the same time having fun.
"Everyone surrounding us right now is positive and we're one big team. It's so fun to represent Canada because it's such a great team. I'm having so much fun. I get to do what I love every day and be around my best friends. I'm so grateful for it," she said.
"I just try to take the small steps every day and try to train my hardest in and out of the water. To do those small steps will allow me to reach my big goals."
On verge of a breakout
With a world championship in June and the Commonwealth Games shortly after that, this summer could be Summer's breakout moment.
Last month McIntosh was named Swimming Canada's Breakout Performer of the Year and the Junior Female Swimmer of the Year.
She won her first individual medal at a major international senior event with a silver in the 400m freestyle at the short course world championships in Abu Dhabi last December. She was also part of the gold-medal winning 4x200m freestyle relay and the 4x100m medley relay team that took silver.
But with two major international meets looming over the next few months, McIntosh isn't putting any extra pressure on herself by projecting certain expectations.
McIntosh comes from a sporting family. Her mother, Jill Horstead, swam for Canada in the 1984 Olympic Games. And her older sister, Brooke McIntosh, is a pairs figure skater.
It wasn't all that long ago McIntosh was sitting in the stands watching national trials and Olympic trials and wondering if one day she might be good enough to compete with the best.
Fast-forward a few years later and she is taking the swimming world by storm and there's no sign of slowing down anytime soon.
"It's really surreal because two years ago this was my big dream and my big goal. To think over two years there's been that big of a change, I never thought it would be like this," McIntosh said.
"I'm just so happy where I am now."
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