PARIS — If these indeed are to be the Games of Summer for the Canada’s dynamic young swimming sensation, that pursuit could start with a magnificent splash here on Saturday night.
In fact, Summer McIntosh, the 17-year-old from Toronto, will take on a pair of giants in the sport as she chases the first Olympic medal in what many are anticipating will be a breakthrough meet for the emerging star.
What a start it figures to be, featuring a formidable showdown in the 400-metre freestyle between three swimmers who each have held the world record in the event.
In one lane will be McIntosh, who claimed the world mark at the Canadian Trials in 2023 — a massive accomplishment given her age.
She held the record for a couple of months until Australia’s Ariarne Titmus, the reigning Olympic champ, claimed the current mark of 3:55.38 at the World Aquatics Championship.
Rounding out the terrific trio will be American superstar Katie Ledecky, a 10-time Olympic medallist who held the world record after winning gold at the 2016 Rio Games.
“For sure it’s pretty incredible that three of the previous or current record holders are swimming in the event together along with so many other amazing women,” McIntosh said, of facing the two most recent Olympic champions — Titmus in Tokyo, Ledecky in Rio. “I’m really excited going in. It’s a really great way to start the meet.”
The more prevalent narrative is the battle between Ledecky and Titmus, who have clashed on the world stage for years. But close observers of the sport are well aware of the calm and collected Canadian and the threat she brings.
“We have the top three times ever in that race and we’re the top three performers, I should say,” Ledecky said here this week. “That just makes for a great field. (McIntosh and Titmus) have continued to raise the game, raise my game. I know I have to bring my best and I think they know they have to bring their best which is what you want in an Olympic race.”
Unlike Penny Oleksiak, who became the darling out the 2016 Rio Games, a breakout star who won four medals in her first Games, McIntosh arrives in Paris with super-sized expectations given the world championships and world records she has compiled since making her Olympic debut as a 14-year-old three years ago.
Besides the freestyle, McIntosh will chase individual medals in her signature and most-accomplished event, the 400-metre medley, as well as the 200 medley and the 400-metre butterfly. She’ll also be involved in some relay events, though those assignments have yet to be confirmed.
On Saturday, she has drawn Lane 4 in the second of three preliminary heats that will be contested shortly after 11 a.m. local time while Ledecky and Titmus will face each other in the third.
The final — featuring the eight fastest swimmers from the heats — will be contested at 8:52 p.m. Roughly 42 minutes later, it’s possible that McIntosh could be competing for another medal, should the 4×100 freestyle team qualify and she is selected among the foursome.
The curtain-raiser at La Defense Arena, a terrific venue that figures to have an electric atmosphere through out the nine-day meet, could offer a rousing start for a Canadian swimming team looking to surpass the six medals it captured in each of the previous two Olympics.
Reigning 100-metre butterfly champion Maggie Mac Neil hopes to cruise through her preliminary heat and semifinal on Saturday while she’s also likely to be part of the 4×100 freestyle relay team she helped capture silver in Tokyo.
After lean Games through much of this century, Canadian swimmers are trending towards powerhouse status with the Paris Olympics the next opportunity to continue the impressive and building surge of the past eight years.
“We had six medals in Rio and six medals in Tokyo, I think six-plus is what it’s got to be,” said John Atkinson, Swimming Canada high performance director and national coach.
The Swimming Canada armada certainly feels that big things are ahead, while the broader Olympic Team could use a jolt of positivity given the soccer scandal that is sullying the Canadian participation here.
“I think when we see Summer McIntosh in the pool (on Saturday), I hope that’s the medicine the whole nation needs and can use,” Canadian Olympic Committee CEO David Shoemaker said on Friday morning.
So yes, a positive start could be huge for a Canadian team that has rebounded from a lengthy drought on the Olympic stage to an emerging force. So many of them are bursting with confidence here, including the men, who are champing at the bit to join their women counterparts on the podium.
“I think that the momentum we gain through the first performances is definitely crucial,” Mac Neil said. “Going back to Tokyo, the 4×100 relay was the first medal that Canada won. I think that set the tone. We had a really successful Games, not just for Canadian swimming, but for Canada as a whole country.”
It’s a concept shared by McIntosh, whose mother Jill swam for Canada at the 1984 Los Angeles Olympics. Based in Florida now, Summer has been meticulous in her training for Paris, a hyper-focused athlete whose competitive maturity belies her age.
“It’s super, super important,” McIntosh said. “Day 1 is where it all kind of starts rolling. It’s something Team Canada has been focused on.”