Two days into the swimming world championships, Summer McIntosh is off to a stellar start, having already secured two gold medals. The 18-year-old Canadian star won the 200-meter individual medley on Monday with a time of 2:06.69, adding to her gold from Sunday’s 400 freestyle event. Alex Walsh from the United States took silver in 2:08.58, while Canada’s Mary-Sophie Harvey earned bronze with a time of 2:09.15.
Though McIntosh’s winning time was short of her own world record of 2:05.70, she remained focused on her main goal. “My objective going into the race was simply to touch the wall first,” she said. “I’m happy with the gold, but not entirely satisfied with my time. At this level, my goal is to race as fast as possible against my competitors. I’m looking forward to keeping the momentum going.”
A standout newcomer is 12-year-old Yu Zidi from China, who impressed the swimming community by finishing fourth in 2:09.21, just missing a medal. Yu is expected to compete in the 400 individual medley and 200 butterfly, which may be her strongest events.
McIntosh is now aiming to claim three more individual golds over the next six days in Singapore, in the 400 IM, 800 freestyle, and 200 butterfly events.
Meanwhile, Gretchen Walsh delivered the United States’ first gold medal of the competition by winning the 100 butterfly on Monday with a time of 54.73. Walsh, who took silver at last year’s championships in Paris, was just shy of her world record of 54.60 set earlier this year. Belgium’s Roos Vanotterdijk earned silver in 55.84, and Australia’s Alexandria Perkins took bronze with 56.33.
Walsh revealed that the American team has been battling an outbreak of acute gastroenteritis, which was traced back to a training camp in Thailand before their arrival in Singapore. While officials confirmed the illness, they have kept details, including the number of affected swimmers, private.
“I’ve been dealing with this illness for the past few days, so my body has felt fragile,” Walsh said. “Luckily, I had the morning to rest and recover, which really helped. It wasn’t easy, but I’m proud to have gone under 55 seconds. I wanted to perform well for my team and represent my country.”
Her older sister, Alex Walsh, was close behind McIntosh at the 150-meter mark during the medley, showing strength in the breaststroke leg, which is her best stroke. “I was excited to see I was gaining on her during breaststroke,” she said, “but freestyle is where I struggle the most.”
Other finals on Monday included Qin Haiyang of China beating Nicolo Martinenghi of Italy in the 100 breaststroke. Qin won with a time of 58.23, marking China’s first gold in Singapore. Martinenghi finished in 58.58, and Kyrgyzstan’s Denis Petrashov took bronze at 58.88. Qin shared that he is still recovering from an injury and is not yet at full strength, but the win boosts his confidence.
In the men’s 50 butterfly, France’s Maxime Grousset edged out Switzerland’s Noe Ponti by a narrow margin, finishing in 22.48 seconds to Ponti’s 22.51. Italy’s Thomas Ceccon took bronze with 22.67.
In semifinals action, Luke Hobson of the U.S., who won bronze at the Paris Olympics, led the 200 freestyle qualifiers with a time of 1:44.80. Romanian David Popovici, the Paris champion, qualified fourth in 1:45.02. Hungary’s Hubert Kós topped the men’s 100 backstroke heats with 52.21. In the women’s 100 backstroke, American Regan Smith led with 58.21, followed closely by Australia’s two-time Olympic champion Kaylee McKeown at 58.44.
Kate Douglass from the U.S. posted a personal best of 1:05.49 in the 100 breaststroke, earning the top seed for Tuesday’s final.
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