At just 15 years old, Canadian Summer McIntosh asserted herself as a swimming force on Wednesday at the aquatics world championships.
In the first event of the day, the Toronto native won her first career world championship gold medal in the 200-metre butterfly. Later, in the last race on the schedule, she powered Canada to bronze in the women’s 4x200m freestyle relay with an opening leg that would have been fast enough to win individual gold.
McIntosh wasn’t the only Canadian teen to make waves on Wednesday, either.
Josh Liendo, 19, reached his first-ever podium at worlds, swimming to bronze in the men’s 100m freestyle.
And relative team veteran Kylie Masse added a new accolade of her own, capturing the country’s second gold medal of the day in the 50m backstroke.
McIntosh now has the full set of medals at worlds after previously earning silver in the 400m freestyle. She earned her gold with a world-junior record of two minutes 5.20 seconds, breaking the mark she set in semifinals Tuesday.
“I think I’m a little bit in shock right now,” she said after the race.
WATCH | McIntosh bursts to gold medal:
Toronto teen Summer McIntosh wins world championship gold in the 200m butterfly
9 hours ago
Duration 9:10
15-year-old Summer McIntosh broke her own world junior record, set only a day before, to win gold in the women’s 200 metre butterfly event at the 2022 FINA world championships in Budapest.
American Hali Flickinger took silver in 2:06.08, while China’s Zhang Yufei scored bronze in 2:06.32.
McIntosh bided her time en route to victory, keeping close to the leaders through 100 metres while making sure not to empty the gas tank too early.
McIntosh made her move at the halfway point. She took over the lead at the 150-metre mark and only extended it down the homestretch, turning what looked like it could be a tight finish into a no-doubt victory for the Canadian.
“I didn’t expect to go 2:05,” McIntosh said. “But as soon as I stepped out with all the energy and excitement from the crowd, I just fed off that. I got a lot of adrenaline and motivation and put it down.”
That unexpected time was over eight seconds faster than McIntosh’s mother Jill Horstead swam to finish ninth at the 1984 Los Angeles Olympics.
The gold medal also marked the first podium appearance ever for Canada in the women’s 200m butterfly at worlds.
WATCH | McIntosh leads Canadian relay bronze:
Canada’s Oleksiak, Sanchez, McIntosh and Ruck win world 4x200m freestyle bronze
7 hours ago
Duration 13:01
Canadians Penny Oleksiak, Kayla Sanchez, Summer McIntosh and Taylor Ruck swam to a bronze medal in the women’s 4×200 metre freestyle relay at the 2022 FINA world championships in Budapest.
Not even two hours later, McIntosh led off the relay team, followed by Kayla Sanchez, Taylor Ruck and Penny Oleksiak.
The teen got the Canadians out to a massive lead with a time of 1:54.79 that would have been good enough for gold had she competed in the individual 200m freestyle. It also marked McIntosh’s second world junior title of the day.
The rest of the squad just had to hang on from there, which they barely did. Canada held off fourth-place China by less than a second, finishing in 7:44.76.
“It was fun to be a part of,” said Oleksiak, the team’s anchor who also swam in the women’s 100 freestyle semifinals. “It was a tough double for me but having the girls really helped.”
Katie Ledecky claimed her 18th gold at a worlds by helping the United States win the event with a championship record of 7:41.45, while Australia snagged silver in 7:43.86. The 25-year-old Ledecky now has 21 medals, extending her record for the most among female swimmers in the competition.
WATCH | Behind McIntosh’s generational talent:
A ‘once in a generation’ swimmer, Summer McIntosh just getting started
6 days ago
Duration 2:07
Summer McIntosh was the youngest member of Team Canada last summer at the Tokyo Olympic Games— but she certainly didn’t show her age on the world’s grandest athletic stage.
It’s the seventh career medal at worlds — all earned in relays — for Oleksiak, matching Masse for the national record and equalling her Olympic total.
She’ll have a shot at her first individual podium on Thursday at 12:02 p.m. ET, when she’ll compete in the 100m freestyle final alongside Sanchez. Oleksiak won gold in the event at the 2016 Olympics.
McIntosh had two fourth-place finishes at last year’s Tokyo Olympics and won a gold and two silver medals at the 2021 short-course championships last December in Abu Dhabi.
WATCH | The significance of Lane 4:
Do you know why lane 4 is significant in swimming?
1 day ago
Duration 0:46
Athletes are assigned different lanes in a swim final and where they are placed can give insight into who stacks up against who. Jacqueline Doorey explains.
Liendo brings home bronze
Liendo took an alternate approach from McIntosh, getting off the blocks quickly and reaching the 50-metre mark in first place.
But the Markham, Ont., native, who became the first Black Canadian to win a medal at a major international meet at the short-course championships, couldn’t maintain his blistering pace over the final 50m.
Even still, Liendo stayed strong enough to touch third with a time of 47.71 seconds. Romania’s David Popovici topped the podium in 47.58 seconds, and France’s Maxime Grousset took silver in 47.64 seconds.
WATCH | Liendo takes bronze in 100m freestyle:
Canada’s Josh Liendo swims to a world championship bronze medal in the 100m freestyle
9 hours ago
Duration 5:40
Josh Liendo of Markham, Ont., claimed a bronze medal in the men’s 100 metre freestyle event at the 2022 FINA world championships in Budapest.
American Caeleb Dressel, a seven-time Olympic medallist and a favourite in the event, withdrew from the rest of the competition for unspecified medical reasons ahead of the race.
“He’s just not fit to compete right now. And so we just needed to make that decision. It needed to be a quick decision,” American team manager Lindsay Mintenko told journalists.
Mintenko said she could not be more specific about the reasons for Dressel’s withdrawal, but that he may decide to speak about it himself. She declined to say whether it was a mental or physical problem. Dressel had appeared in good shape.
He had pulled out of Tuesday’s semifinals in the 100m freestyle and it wasn’t clear at the time if he’d be able to continue. He was also due to race the 50m freestyle and 100m butterfly later in the worlds.
Masse golden again
Masse, the two-time reigning 100m backstroke champion who relinquished her title to American Regan Smith earlier at worlds but held on for silver, said that race was out of her mind by the time she got to the pool on Wednesday.
“Totally new race. 50 is fun, I think it’s a dream to come to the pool and only swim one length,” the LaSalle, Ont., native said poolside.
Masse stormed to an early lead in the non-Olympic event, but appeared to fall back to the pack as the race approached its quick end.
Yet the Canadian found one final gear, out-touching American Katharine Berkoff with a time of 27.31 seconds to win gold.
“It goes by really fast. I’m just focusing on nailing the touch because I know it comes down to the small details,” she said.
WATCH | Masse golden in 50m backstroke:
Canada’s Kylie Masse claims world championship gold in 50m backstroke
8 hours ago
Duration 7:04
Kylie Masse of LaSalle, Ont., added to her silver medal in the 100 metre backstroke with a gold medal in the 50 metre backstroke event at the 2022 FINA world championships in Budapest.
Masse became the first swimmer from Canada, male or female, to win three golds at a worlds.
Berkoff finished in 27.39 seconds, with bronze medallist Analia Pigree of France just one one-hundredth of a second behind.
Canada’s Ingrid Wilm barely missed the podium, placing fourth in 27.43 seconds.
“I had a horrible touch,” Wilm said. “I know I can do better than that. You have good days and bad days.”
For more stories about the experiences of Black Canadians — from anti-Black racism to success stories within the Black community — check out Being Black in Canada, a CBC project Black Canadians can be proud of. You can read more stories here.
TORONTO – Reigning PWHL MVP and scoring champ Natalie Spooner will miss the start of the regular season for the Toronto Sceptres, general manager Gina Kingsbury announced Tuesday on the first day of training camp.
The 33-year-old Spooner had knee surgery on her left anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) after she was checked into the boards by Minnesota’s Grace Zumwinkle in Game 3 of their best-of-five semifinal series on May 13.
She had a goal and an assist in three playoff games but did not finish the series. Toronto was up 2-1 in the semifinal at that time and eventually fell 3-2 in the series.
Spooner led the PWHL with 27 points in 24 games. Her 20 goals, including five game-winners, were nine more than the closest skater.
Kingsbury said there is no timeline, as the team wants the Toronto native at 100 per cent, but added that “she is doing really well” in her recovery.
The Sceptres open the PWHL season on Nov. 30 when they host the Boston Fleet.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 12, 2024.
LAHORE, Pakistan (AP) — A top official of the Pakistan Cricket Board declined Friday to confirm media reports that India has decided against playing any games in host Pakistan during next year’s Champions Trophy.
“My view is if there’s any problems, they (India) should tell us in writing,” PCB chairman Mohsin Naqvi told reporters in Lahore. “I’ll share that with the media as well as with the government as soon as I get such a letter.”
Indian media reported Friday that the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) has communicated its concerns to all the Champions Trophy stakeholders, including the PCB, over the Feb. 19-March 9 tournament and would not play in arch-rival Pakistan.
The Times of India said that “Dubai is a strong candidate to host the fixtures involving the Men in Blue” for the 50-over tournament.
Such a solution would see Pakistan having to travel to a neutral venue to play India in a group match, with another potential meeting later in the tournament if both teams advanced from their group. The final is scheduled for March 9 in Pakistan with the specific venue not yet decided.
“Our stance is clear,” Naqvi said. “They need to give us in writing any objections they may have. Until now, no discussion of the hybrid model has happened, nor are we prepared to accept one.”
Political tensions have stopped bilateral cricket between the two nations since 2008 and they have competed in only multi-nation tournaments, including ICC World Cups.
“Cricket should be free of politics,” Naqvi said. “Any sport should not be entangled with politics. Our preparations for the Champions Trophy will continue unabated, and this will be a successful event.”
The PCB has already spent millions of dollars on the upgrade of stadiums in Karachi, Lahore and Rawalpindi which are due to host 15 Champions Trophy games. Naqvi hoped all the three stadiums will be ready over the next two months.
“Almost every country wants the Champions Trophy to be played here (in Pakistan),” Naqvi said. “I don’t think anyone should make this a political matter, and I don’t expect they will. I expect the tournament will be held at the home of the official hosts.”
Eight countries – Pakistan, India, Bangladesh, England, Australia, South Africa, New Zealand and Afghanistan – are due to compete in the tournament, the schedule of which is yet to be announced by the International Cricket Council.
“Normally the ICC announces the schedule of any major tournament 100 days before the event, and I hope they will announce it very soon,” Naqvi said.
RIYADH, Saudi Arabia – Ottawa‘s Gabriela Dabrowski and Erin Routliffe of New Zealand are through to the doubles final at the WTA Finals after a 7-6 (7), 6-1 victory over Nicole Melichar-Martinez of the United States and Australia’s Ellen Perez in semifinal action Friday.
Dabrowski and Routliffe won a hard-fought first set against serve when Routliffe’s quick reaction at the net to defend a Perez shot gave the duo set point, causing Perez to throw down her racket in frustration.
The second seeds then cruised through the second set, winning match point on serve when Melichar-Martinez couldn’t handle Routliffe’s shot.
The showdown was a rematch of last year’s semifinal, which Melichar-Martinez and Perez won in a super tiebreak.
Dabrowski and Routliffe will face the winner of a match between Katerina Siniakova and Taylor Townsend, and Hao-Ching Chan and Veronika Kudermetova in the final on Saturday.
Dabrowski is aiming to become the first Canadian to win a WTA Finals title.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 8, 2024.
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