NANTERRE, France — Forget the Summer Games. This might just be Summer’s Games.
Summer McIntosh, the 17-year-old Canadian phenom, won the first Olympic gold medal of her career Monday night in the grueling women’s 400-meter individual medley, touching the wall in 4:27.71.
Americans Katie Grimes (4:33.40) took silver and Emma Weyant (4:34.93) earned bronze.
McIntosh is the world record-holder and two-time world champion in the event and was considered the heavy favorite in the 400 IM coming into the Paris Olympics. The result is not necessarily a surprise, but it remains impressive. It’s her second medal of the Games so far, following a silver in the 400-meter freestyle.
Later this week, McIntosh will swim — and be a top contender — in both the 200 IM and the 200 fly.
McIntosh has said she grew up idolizing American swimming stars Katie Ledecky and Michael Phelps. She had a poster of Ledecky on her wall growing up and her cat was named “Mikey” after Phelps. And here she is, shining on the Olympic stage just like them.
She even beat Ledecky on the first night of competition, with Ledecky taking bronze in the 400 free behind both McIntosh and Olympic champion Ariadne Titmus. That final, hyped as one of the most-anticipated races of the entire Games, featured three swimmers who had previously owned the world record in the event.
Required reading
(Photo: Manan Vatsyayan / AFP via Getty Images)
