Summer McIntosh misses 400m freestyle final at Pan Pacific Championships

By Liam Tremblay — 14 August 2026 — 3 min read

Summer McIntosh, the world record holder in the women’s 400-metre freestyle, did not qualify for the championship final of the event at the Pan Pacific Championships. The Canadian swimmer finished ninth in the preliminary heats with a time of 4:08.56.

This result marks a significant surprise in an event where McIntosh has demonstrated international dominance over the past year. Her preliminary time was more than 14 seconds slower than her own world record in the 400-metre freestyle.

Freestyle Challenges and Other Performances

The 400-metre freestyle outcome follows a challenging week in freestyle events for McIntosh. On day one of the competition, she lost the 200-metre freestyle by 0.19 seconds to Australia’s Lani Pallister. This occurred after McIntosh had scratched from the 200-metre butterfly event.

Despite these freestyle stumbles, McIntosh secured a gold medal in the 400-metre individual medley earlier in the competition. She also earned a silver medal in the 200-metre freestyle and a bronze medal as part of a relay team at the meet. Her participation in a demanding schedule may be a contributing factor to her recent performances.

In the 400-metre freestyle heats, McIntosh was initially positioned to finish second behind Pallister in her heat but was ultimately out-touched at the wall, placing third in that specific heat.

Competitors Advance to Final

With McIntosh not advancing to the A final, the 400-metre freestyle final is set to feature a contest between Katie Ledecky and Lani Pallister. This matchup is anticipated as a form of rematch, given Pallister’s strong performance against Ledecky in the 1500-metre freestyle on Wednesday.

Katie Ledecky of the United States led all qualifiers in the 400-metre freestyle with a time of 4:03.48. Erika Fairweather from New Zealand secured the second-fastest qualifying time at 4:04.50. American Kennedi Dobson qualified third with 4:05.10, just ahead of Pallister, who placed fourth among the qualifiers.

McIntosh will compete in the B final of the 400-metre freestyle. Another Canadian swimmer, Ella Cosgrove, also advanced to the B final after finishing 13th overall in the heats.

Other Events at the Championships

The Pan Pacific Championships continue with other notable events. Gretchen Walsh is expected to pursue a sprint butterfly sweep in the 100-metre butterfly, an event where she holds the world record. This follows her unexpected loss in the 100-metre freestyle on day two.

In the 200-metre backstroke, Regan Smith aims to build on a strong championship-record swim from the morning heats, having already secured silver medals in both the 50-metre and 100-metre backstroke events.

On the men’s side, Australia’s Sam Short, who achieved a championship-record win in the 800-metre freestyle on day one, led the 400-metre freestyle preliminary heats with a time of 3:44.34. He is positioned to contend for his second gold medal in the 400-metre freestyle from lane number four.

In the 50-metre breaststroke, McKenzie Siroky has an opportunity to win her second Pan Pac title. However, she faces strong competition from China’s Tang Qianting, who broke Lilly King’s U.S. Open record during the morning preliminaries. Additionally, Van Mathias will attempt to secure his second event win of the championships in the men’s 50-metre breaststroke, competing against a competitive field led by South Africa’s Michael Houlie.

Source: ca.sports.yahoo.com