FLASH! Summer McIntosh Shatters 400 Free WR In 3:50.25
Summer McIntosh shattered Li Bingjie’s 400 free world record in 3:50.25 at the World Short-Course Championships in Budapest.
It was the second WR of the meet so far following Gretchen Walsh’s shuddering effort in the 50 fly prelims.
With that, McIntosh also became the first Canadian woman to win the 400 free at short-course worlds by claiming the first title in the Hungarian capital.
Reigning champion Lani Pallister set an Oceania record of 3:53.73 in second with Mary-Sophie Harvey making it a Canada 1-3 in 3:54.88.
McIntosh said: “I absolutely love this pool. It holds so many memories for me back in 2022 so to be back here after a lot of change since then so it’s kind of good to see that. Yeah, definitely a very fast pool as well.
“Just to set the tone is always amazing to get day one started off right.”
With that, the 18-year-old also claimed $25,000, which she plans to use to buy Christmas presents for friends and family and maybe to also treat herself.
“The money is always nice and it’s an extra little bit of motivation but overall I just enjoy racing so much and it’s always a good time against those girls as well so I had a lot of fun.”
Pallister paid tribute to her young rival, saying: “I’m really happy to be here. Summer is incredible… I really enjoyed the race, I swam my own race and own style and never watched the others. I’m pretty satisfied with my time and this silver medal.”
It’s the most significant individual medal of Harvey’s career, coming at age 25 for the Quebec native. She had two bronze medals at the World Championships in long course and two relay medals, including silver, at the 2022 Melbourne Short-Course World Championships. But this medal stands with her 200 freestyle gold at the Pan American Games as the most significant individual achievement. She had finished fourth in three relays plus the 200 free at the Paris Olympics.
“It’s my first international medal at 25, it is surreal,” she said. “It’s something that I have always strived for. To finally get it, it is years of hard work, it shows that at 25 you can still achieve success. I think this is the beginning of a great week ahead.”
