Sports (Commonwealth Union) _ Canada’s Summer McIntosh secured a third gold medal to her belt on the fifth day of the 2025 World Aquatics Championships held in Singapore, adding to the excellent performances in elite swimming. The 18-year-old swimming prodigy dominated the women’s 200m butterfly, stopping the clock at 2:01.99—just 0.18 seconds shy of breaking the world record that has stood since 2009.
China‘s Liu Zige set the world record of 2:01.81 during the controversial “supersuit era,” and it has long been considered nearly untouchable. Yet McIntosh came heartbreakingly close, turning under record pace before fading slightly in the final stretch. Despite recording the second-fastest time in history, the visibly emotional McIntosh expressed mixed feelings about her swim.
“I’m happy with the three golds. That was the goal going in, but my other goal tonight was to break the world record,” she said after the race.
Her performance not only set a new Canadian record and an American record but also marked the fastest swim ever in a textile suit, establishing her dominance in a post-supersuit era.
McIntosh now holds three golds from these championships, having already captured titles in the 400m freestyle and 200m individual medley (IM). With two more events ahead—the 800 m freestyle and 400 IM—she remains in contention to match Michael Phelps’ record of five individual golds at a single world championship.
The teenager also became the first Canadian to win three golds at one world meet, solidifying her status as the most decorated Canadian across all World Aquatics disciplines, with 11 career medals. She surpassed swimming legend Kylie Masse and diver Jennifer Abel, each of whom has 10.
American Regan Smith, who finished with silver in 2:04.99, and Australia’s Elizabeth Dekkers, who claimed bronze in 2:06.12, joined McIntosh on the podium. China’s 12-year-old sensation Yu Zidi narrowly missed out again, finishing fourth.
Canada’s success extends beyond McIntosh. Blake Tierney advanced to the final of the men’s 200m backstroke after breaking the national record twice—once in the heats and again in the semis. Meanwhile, Kylie Masse just missed a podium finish in the 50m backstroke final, finishing 0.03 seconds behind third place.
Canada now sits third in the overall swimming medal table, trailing only powerhouse nations Australia and the United States. With just three days left, Canada is on track to surpass its previous best result. The team finished sixth with six medals at the 2023 championships. In 2024, at the less-attended Doha meet, they placed 13th. This year’s leap reflects both the emergence of new talent and consistency from veteran athletes.
Elsewhere in the pool, France’s Léon Marchand followed up his world-record-setting swim in the 200 IM semifinals with gold in the final. Although Léon Marchand fell short of repeating his 1:52.69 mark from Wednesday, his time of 1:53.68 was still the second-fastest ever recorded in the event. American Shaine Casas took silver, with Hungary’s Hubert Kos securing bronze.
Romania’s David Popovici electrified the arena with a thrilling win in the men’s 100 m freestyle, clocking 46.51 and just missing Pan Zhanle’s world record of 46.40. The 20-year-old has now completed the 100-200 freestyle double for the second time in his world championship career, having done so in 2022. “I just feel very relieved that this huge pressure of being afraid of winning or losing is off me,” Popovici said.
In the final race of the night, Mollie O’Callaghan led Australia to a second relay gold, anchoring their 4x200m freestyle team to victory over the United States, despite a strong challenge from Katie Ledecky. O’Callaghan’s 11th world championship gold ties her with Ian Thorpe as the most decorated Australian swimmer at the event.
The competition continues through August 3, with more medals set to be awarded in the men’s 200m breaststroke, 200m backstroke, 4x200m freestyle relay, and the women’s 200m breaststroke.
