By: Hannah Zhang

Summer McIntosh touched the wall of the women’s 400-meter individual medley swimming pool on July 29, 2024, in Paris with a time of 4:27.71. Nearly six seconds ahead of second place, McIntosh bags the first Olympic gold medal of her career and the second for Team Canada this year.

Medals aren’t the only thing McIntosh earned with this win. She’s also become the first Canadian woman to win the 400-meter individual medley, in which swimmers swim a quarter of a 400 meter race in Butterfly, Backstroke, Breastroke, and Freestyle in a certain order. Even though she was three seconds behind her own world record of 4:24.38, which she set at the 2024 Canadian Olympic Swimming Trials mid-May, her score was still more than enough for an Olympic win.

The runners-up of the competition were Katie Grimes and Emma Weyant, finishing second and third, respectively, both American swimmers.

McIntosh grew up idolizing swimmers Katie Ledecky and Michael Phelps, having had posters of Ledecky on the wall and naming her cat “Mikey” after the swimmer. She’s come a long way from that, and is now basking in the same glory on the Olympic stage as her idols once did. With such a spectacular performance at only her second Games, viewers will anticipate more incredible accomplishments from McIntosh in the near future as her career progresses, going as far as to calling her Katie Ledecky’s “heir apparent.”

Though only 17, McIntosh isn’t without experience, having swam in the 2021 Tokyo Olympics. She says on the topic, “Every single time I get to race on the world stage, I learn more and more about handling (it) mentally and physically and emotionally.”After her Olympic debut at 14, McIntosh has gone on to race in many more competitions, and thus, breaking many more records.

Aside from that, McIntosh is extraordinary at handling her nerves, keeping her composure in the pool, on the podium, and during her run-in with the media. So, it is no surprise that her coach, Brent Arckey, has spoken to her often about the pressure and chaos of the Olympic Games.

Summer McIntosh’s gold medal does not mark the end of her presence at the 2024 Olympics. As of July 31, 2024, she still looks forward to the Women’s 200m Butterfly, the Women’s 4×200 Freestyle Relay, and the Women’s 200 Individual Medley.