Canadian swimmer Summer McIntosh narrowly missed out on winning gold by 0.02 seconds in the women’s 200-meter individual medley at the Pan Pacific Swimming Championships. The Toronto native, an Olympic and world champion, settled for silver behind China’s Yu Yiting, who set a championship record with a time of 2:07.45. American Alex Walsh claimed the bronze medal with a time of 2:07.66.
During the race, Yu was ahead of the world-record pace in the butterfly leg, but American Regan Smith took the lead during the backstroke. Yu regained the lead in the breaststroke and managed to hold off McIntosh in the final meters. This marked McIntosh’s third individual medal of the competition, having previously won gold in the 400m medley and silver in the 200m freestyle. She also contributed to Canada’s bronze in the women’s 4x100m freestyle relay.
Reflecting on her performance, McIntosh expressed that despite it being one of her better swims at the meet, she was disappointed with the overall results. As the world record-holder in the event with a time of 2:05.70, set in 2025, McIntosh looks ahead to improving in the upcoming season as she transitions into her 20s.
In a separate event, fellow Canadian Alexanne Lepage claimed victory in the women’s 200m breaststroke, finishing with a lifetime best of 2:21.73. Lepage led the race from start to finish, surpassing reigning Olympic and world champion Kate Douglass of the United States, who secured the silver medal. South Africa’s Kaylene Corbett rounded out the top three with a time of 2:22.97.
The Pan Pacific Championships concluded with Canada securing a total of 13 medals (three gold, four silver, six bronze), marking their most successful performance since the 1997 edition in Fukuoka, Japan. The U.S. dominated the medal standings with 50 medals, followed by Australia with 35 and Canada with 13.