Summer’s golden swim helps Canada deal with gloomy scandal
PARIS—Summer McIntosh’s rampaging win in the women’s 400-meter individual medley (IM) in the Paris Olympics on Monday could not have come at a better time for a beleaguered Canadian team sinking under the weight of a soccer spying scandal.
McIntosh, the world record holder, left a quality field in her wake, getting to the wall first almost six seconds clear of chasing Americans Katie Grimes and Emma Weyant in a display of utter domination that was cheered by a capacity crowd at the La Defense pool and no doubt lifted Canadian hearts back home.
It was the type of swim that might be remembered as one of Canada’s great Olympic moments, and it might also take something that special to polish the country’s tarnished sporting image.
Canadians have been desperate for a sporting hero or heroine to emerge from the dark cloud cast by a drone spying scandal engulfing the women’s soccer team that has seen coaches banned and the Olympic champions’ medal hopes hanging by a thread after having six points deducted.
It was 17-year-old McIntosh coming to the rescue on Monday with a performance she hoped made her team proud and provided some inspiration for kids back home.
“Obviously these moments only come around every four years, so I’m just trying to make Team Canada proud and kind of set the tone for us tonight,” said McIntosh. “I just hope that anyone watching back home, I try to inspire as many young kids as possible.
“I hope that they know that if I can do it, they can do it too.”
After days of Canada being bombarded by headlines branding them as cheats, McIntosh’s stellar work in the pool will pry some of the attention away from the scandal and the teen could yet do enough to be the story of the Games for Canada.
Her triumph comes two days after she took silver behind Australian powerhouse Ariarne Titmus in the 400m freestyle on the meet’s opening day, and with two more individual events (200m IM and 200m butterfly) and relays she could leave Paris as one of Canada’s most decorated Olympians.
