By: Jerry Zhang

Canadian swimming sensation Summer McIntosh won her first Olympic gold medal on Monday, July 29, 2024, in the women’s 400-meter individual medley at the age of just 17. McIntosh finished the race in 4:27.71, leaving her competitors far behind. The silver medalist, Katie Grimes, completed the race in 4:33.40, and the bronze medalist, Emma Weyant, finished in 4:34.93.

As the world record holder and a two-time world champion in this event, McIntosh entered the Paris Olympics as the clear favorite. Therefore, it was not surprising that she placed first in the event. What was unexpected, however, was the size of her lead. Typically, leads are only one to two seconds, but she was almost 6 seconds ahead of the second place American Katie Grimes. Something which is certainly unprecedented.

Following her win, in an interview by The Athletic, McIntosh commented on her mentality about swimming at such events, stating, “I have been doing this since I was 14. Every single time I get to race on the world stage, I learned more and more about handling [it] mentally and physically and emotionally. I try not to get too high or too low depending on my race results.”

Growing up, McIntosh idolized swimming legends Katie Ledecky and Michael Phelps, even naming her cat “Mikey” and having a poster of Ledecky hanging up on her wall. Now, she competes with them and even had the chance to race against her idol Katie Ledecky in the 2020 400-meter freestyle, where she managed to beat her.

Summer McIntosh serves as an inspiration to the next generation of swimmers. “She’s an inspiration to everyone,” said teammate Kylie Masse to The Athletic. “For so many young swimmers in Canada to be able to see her and see her success here on the international stage, (they’ll know) that they can dream big and continue to do whatever they put their mind to.” Hopefully, McIntosh’s triumph will inspire new talent to enter the sport and motivate others to pursue their dreams, just as she did.