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Summer McIntosh dominates in the pool: three world records in five days and Phelps' shadow no longer seems so far away

In just five days, Summer McIntosh has made it clear that she is not just a promising talent, she is a reality at breakneck speed. The 18-year-old Canadian swimmer has had one of the most spectacular weeks in modern swimming history, breaking three world records in different individual events. Yes, you read that right: three. And she did it in a single national championship, making it clear that the sky is the limit.

Her latest feat came in the 400-metre medley, where she not only won, but smashed her own record. She stopped the clock at 4:23.65, beating her previous mark of 4:24.38, set in last year's Canadian trials, by more than seven tenths of a second. To put the magnitude of this achievement into perspective, this time is the best ever recorded in the history of women's swimming. And bear in mind that five of the six best times also belong to her.

This refined version of McIntosh has had a lot to do with the intensive training she has done in France with coach Fred Vergnoux, known for having taken Mireia Belmonte to the top. Particularly decisive has been her work on her backstroke, which is key to her dominance in the medley. In this latest event, for example, she covered the 100 metres in 1:06.13, a remarkable improvement on her previous record of 1:07.12.

‘I knew I could do something big. It was probably the best competition of my life. Records are there to be broken, and that's what drives me: knowing that there will always be someone trying to go faster,’ McIntosh explained after her feat. The phrase could have been said by any sporting legend, but it comes from a teenager who has not yet reached her physical peak.

But that's not all. At the same national championships, McIntosh also broke the world records for the 200 medley and 400 freestyle, becoming the first swimmer since Michael Phelps (yes, that Michael Phelps) to break three world records in individual events in the same long-course event. That happened in Beijing in 2008. Since then, no one had dared to even come close to that feat... until now.

As if that weren't enough, the young Canadian has added two more national records to her collection: one in the 200 butterfly (2:02.26), which leaves her just 0.45 seconds off Liu Zige's 2009 world record; and another in the 800 freestyle, with a time of 8:05.07. Yes, she is also starting to strike fear into those events.

The feeling is clear: Summer McIntosh is no longer competing only with her rivals in the pool, but with the history of the sport. With records that defy what seemed unattainable and a versatility that allows her to shine in various styles, her name is beginning to be mentioned alongside the greatest. And although she still has a long way to go, what she has already achieved in these five days secures her a special place in the record books.

If everything goes according to plan, Paris 2024 (and everything that comes after) could have McIntosh as its star attraction. Because when a swimmer is capable of performing at this level, comparisons with Phelps are no longer an exaggeration: they are the starting point.