Swimming

2022 Swammy Awards: World Junior Female Swimmer of the Year – Summer McIntosh

December 23, 2022

To see all of our 2022 Swammy Awards, click here.

2022 WORLD JUNIOR FEMALE SWIMMER OF THE YEAR: SUMMER MCINTOSH, CANADA

Summer McIntosh was a relentless force on the international stage throughout 2022, earning her World Junior Female Swimmer of the Year honors.

After announcing her presence as a rising talent at the Tokyo Olympics, McIntosh emerged as one of the best swimmers on the planet over the past 12 months, winning a pair of individual world titles and swimming some of the fastest times in history across multiple events.

At the Canadian Selection Trials Prep Invite in March, McIntosh, 15 at the time, produced a mind-boggling time of 4:29.12 in the women’s 400 IM, ranking her third all-time in what was the fastest swim since Katinka Hosszu set the world record of 4:26.36 at the 2016 Olympic Games.

That swim was simply the beginning of an astonishing year for McIntosh, having also swam to a new Canadian and World Junior in the 200 fly (2:05.81) just a day later at the prep meet.

After going four-for-four at the Canadian World Trials in April, including breaking her own National Record in the women’s 400 free (4:01.59), McIntosh made her Long Course World Championship debut in Budapest.

The Etobicoke Swimming product roared to world titles in the women’s 200 fly (2:05.20) and 400 IM (4:32.04), resetting her Canadian and World Junior Records in the former, and also went toe-to-toe with Katie Ledecky in the 400 free, earning a silver medal and another National Record in 3:59.39.

McIntosh also led off the Canadian women’s 800 free relay with a 200 free time of 1:54.79, setting a new World Junior Record and adding a bronze medal to her collection to give her four medals for the competition.

Next up was the Commonwealth Games in Birmingham, England, and despite the quick turnaround from Worlds, McIntosh was arguably even better. She lowered her own records with a gold medal swim in the 400 IM (4:29.01), set a new WJR with a victory in the 200 IM (2:08.70), and battled Australian Ariarne Titmus in the 400 free, picking up the silver in another best time of 3:59.32.

McIntosh added three relay medals at the Games, including a lead-off leg of 54.62 on the 400 free relay and an anchor split of 53.33 on the 400 medley relay.

The accolades didn’t stop flooding in once the summer came to a close and the short course season began, as the now 16-year-old set new World Junior Records in the women’s 400 free (3:52.80) and 400 IM (4:21.49) in SCM on the FINA World Cup circuit, also adding another Canadian Record in the 800 free (8:07.12).

Her swim in the 400 free was a head-to-win over Ledecky, while the 400 IM performance made her the fourth-fastest swimmer ever.

McIntosh, now training with the Sarasota Sharks in Florida, then headed to the U.S. Open in Greensboro, N.C. at the end of November, and somehow, dropped another record performance in the 400 IM.

This time, she touched in 4:28.61 for the fourth-fastest swim ever to improve on her WJR and Canadian Record from the Commonwealth Games, putting her within 15 one-hundredths of Ye Shiwen (4:28.43) for the second on the all-time performers’ list and giving her three of the six-fastest swims ever.

McIntosh also swam to a new lifetime best of 2:07.15 in the 200 back, neared her PB in the 400 free (3:59.79) in another exciting showdown with Ledecky, and then stayed in Greensboro to race short course yards for the first time at the Winter Junior Championships – East the following week. There, she became the #2 performer of all-time behind Ledecky in the 500 free, clocking 4:27.52.

Overall, McIntosh concludes the year as the owner of four individual World Junior Records in long course and an additional two in short course, and she now has her name attached to six Canadian senior records.

McIntosh’s World Junior Records

200 free (LCM) – 1:54.79
200 fly (LCM) – 2:05.20
200 IM (LCM) – 2:08.70
400 IM (LCM) – 4:28.61
400 free (SCM) – 3:52.80
400 IM (SCM) – 4:21.49

But nothing better displays her phenomenal year than looking at where she stacked up against the rest of the world this year. McIntosh ranks sixth or better across six different LCM events in 2022:

Event (LCM)	2022 World Rank	Time	Competition
Women’s 400 IM	1st	4:28.61	2022 U.S. Open
Women’s 200 butterfly	1st	2:05.20	2022 World Championships
Women’s 400 freestyle	3rd	3:59.32	2022 Commonwealth Games
Women’s 200 IM	3rd	2:08.70	2022 Commonwealth Games
Women’s 200 freestyle	4th	1:54.79	2022 World Championships
Women’s 200 backstroke	6th	2:07.15	2022 U.S. Open

Having only turned 16 in August, McIntosh is already knocking on the door of being the world’s best swimmer. She’s certainly the most versatile female on the planet, given her performances in the 400 IM, and at 15, she became just the fourth swimmer ever under 4:00 in the women’s 400 free.

HONORABLE MENTIONS

Katie Grimes (USA) – After breaking through and qualifying for the U.S. Olympic team last year, Grimes followed up with a standout 2022 that included winning a pair of silver medals at the Long Course World Championships in the women’s 1500 free and 400 IM. The 16-year-old also won two gold medals at the World Junior Open Water Championships, broke the WJR in the 1500 free in short course meters, and also set U.S. National Age Group Records in both LCM and SCY for 15-16 girls in the 400 IM.
Benedetta Pilato (ITA) – Pilato came into the year with an impressive international resume considering she only turned 17 this past January, but took the next step in 2022, becoming the LC world champion in the women’s 100 breaststroke. The Italian native also won silver in the 50 breast at Worlds, and then competing on home soil at the European Championships in August, won gold in the 100 breast and took silver in the 50 breast once again.
Mio Narita (JPN) – Although she flew relatively under the radar, Narita swept the girls’ 200 and 400 IM at both the Junior Pan Pacific Championships and the World Junior Championships, adding a silver in the 200 back at Junior Pan Pacs. Having only turned 16 in mid-December, Narita also made headlines in March when she produced a time of 4:36.71 in the LCM 400 IM which was officially recognized as the WJR until McIntosh broke it.
Merve Tuncel (TUR) – Tuncel continued to boost her exemplary junior resume in 2022, sweeping the girls’ 400, 800 and 1500 free at Junior Pan Pacs and World Juniors. The 17-year-old Turkish native took the next step by earning a podium finish on the senior scene, claiming bronze in the women’s 800 free at the European Championships.