Summer McIntosh, the current world record-holder in the women’s 400-meter freestyle event, fell short of qualifying for the A final at the Pan Pacific Swimming Championships in Irvine, California. Despite initially positioning herself to secure a second-place finish behind Australia’s Lani Pallister in the morning heat, McIntosh was narrowly out-touched at the wall, settling for third place and ranking ninth overall with a time of 4 minutes 8.56 seconds, which was 14 seconds slower than her record-breaking performance. China’s Fan Yaqi, aged 15, clinched the final eighth spot for the 10:07 p.m. ET final with a time of 4:08.36.
The 19-year-old Canadian standout from Toronto announced that she will be participating in the B final at 10:01 p.m., alongside her teammate Ella Cosgrove, who finished 13th overall. Those interested can watch the live stream on CBCSports.ca and CBC Gem. McIntosh took responsibility for her performance, admitting her misjudgment in the morning heats, and expressed gratitude for the support she has received.
McIntosh had set a new record of 3:54.18 at the Canadian swimming trials in Victoria last June, surpassing the record previously held by the now-retired Ariarne Titmus of Australia. The much-anticipated A final at the William Woollett Jr. Aquatics Center featured a showdown between American record-holder Katie Ledecky, Pallister, and McIntosh. Ledecky secured the top spot in the qualifying rounds with a time of 4:03.48, while Pallister claimed the fourth spot with a time of 4:05.22.
During her debut at the Pan Pacific Championships, McIntosh won silver in the women’s 200-meter freestyle event with a time of 1:53.86, trailing Pallister by a narrow margin. She continued her success by setting a championship record in the 400 individual medley with a time of 4:28.01 and also contributed to Canada’s bronze medal in the women’s 200 free relay. McIntosh is set to compete in the 200 IM event on Saturday.
For more insights and highlights from the championships, viewers can refer to the provided sources.