In Paris Olympics, Canadian rising star Summer McIntosh secured her second win with yet another exceptional performance. Meanwhile, Kate Douglass managed to clinch the gold for the American team, which had previously struggled with several second-place finishes.
On Thursday night, McIntosh emerged victorious in the 200-meter butterfly, leaving American Regan Smith with a familiar silver medal finish.
In the 200 breaststroke race, Douglass took the lead and secured the top position for the U.S. This race marked a significant shift in power and showcased the emergence of a new champion.
In the final, Lilly King, a renowned American swimmer who was participating in her last Olympics, finished last. Despite this, she showed her sportsmanship by crossing several lane ropes to give a warm embrace to her fellow swimmer, Regan Douglass, who is known for her versatility and had just won a gold medal.
The most dominant swimming nation in the world has secured its fourth swimming gold medal, accompanied by 10 silver medals and six bronzes.
During the first half of the 200 fly race, Zhang Yufei, the reigning Olympic champion from China, set a fast pace. Despite being one of the many Chinese swimmers who tested positive for a banned substance before the Tokyo Games but were still permitted to compete, Zhang Yufei showed her skill in the water.
There was no chance of her keeping McIntosh at bay.
At just 17 years old, she dominated the competition by taking the lead on the third 50 and solidifying her win on the closing lap. She achieved an impressive feat by finishing with an Olympic record time of 2:03.03.
McIntosh admits that at the 125 mark, he started to feel the urge to race. Normally, he tends to start off a bit faster, but on this occasion, he made the conscious decision to bring it home.
McIntosh proved to be a tough competitor at La Defense Arena, establishing herself as one of the biggest stars of the event. Although Smith passed Zhang, there was no chance of catching up to McIntosh’s impressive performance.
In the 400 freestyle event, McIntosh kicked off the games with an impressive performance, securing a silver medal and leaving behind Katie Ledecky. Moreover, she dominated the competition in the 400 individual medley, proving her exceptional skills in the water.
Smith clinched her fourth silver medal in her career, but has yet to secure a gold as she touched in at 2:03.84. Zhang managed to hold on for the bronze medal with a timing of 2:05.09.
Having won a bronze medal at the Tokyo Olympics in the 200 individual medley, Douglass can now proudly claim to have a full collection of Olympic medals.
Assisting the American team in securing a silver medal in the 4×100 freestyle relay, she kicked off the Paris Games with a strong start.
On Thursday, she picked up the most appealing color available to her.
In a thrilling race, Douglass took charge on the second lap out of four and managed to hold off Tatjana Smith from South Africa, ultimately winning with a time of 2:19.24.
At 22 years old, Douglass expressed her initial uncertainty about being able to call herself an Olympic champion. However, she now feels thrilled to see her dream come true. “It’s just really exciting to see it happen,” she added.
In the 200-meter breaststroke, Smith had to settle for silver with a time of 2:19.60, after winning gold in the 100 breaststroke. The bronze medal was secured by Tes Schouten from the Netherlands, who finished with a time of 2:21.05.
In her final Olympic appearance, King, who has previously won five medals, including two golds, was unable to secure an individual prize. Her performance in the 100 breaststroke resulted in a fourth-place tie, and she finished over 6.5 seconds behind Douglass in the 200.
Douglass is poised to add another medal to her collection as she competes in the 200 IM.
Bob Bowman-coached swimmer, Hubert Kós, clinched the gold medal in the 200 backstroke, adding another victory to his name.
In an impressive display of athleticism, Kós managed to surge ahead on the last lap and overtake Greece’s Apostolos Christou to claim victory. The triumphant finish was completed in a time of 1:54.26, with Christou closely following to take the silver medal with a time of 1:54.82. The bronze medal was secured by Roman Mityukov of Switzerland, finishing with a time of 1:54.85.
While at Arizona State University, Kós had the privilege of being coached by Bowman, who also coached France’s Léon Marchand, one of the biggest swimming stars of the current games.
At present, the program at the University of Texas is being led by Bowman, with Kós having transferred to join him.
Kós expressed his gratitude towards being a part of a team that has been on an incredible journey. He further added that the secret behind the team’s success lies in their hard work and the leader’s magic touch. The leader never settles for second best and pushes the team to achieve excellence. This approach brings out the best in each team member.
In the men’s 200 individual medley semifinals, Marchand positioned himself for another shot at the gold medal by clocking the quickest time of 1:56.31.
With three gold medals already under his belt, the French star is heavily favored to add a fourth as he competes in his final individual event on Friday.
Carson Foster of the United States recorded an impressive time of 1:56.37, which was the second-fastest time.
Caeleb Dressel, the American swimmer, narrowly made it through the morning preliminaries, but now he has the opportunity to defend his Olympic title in the 50 freestyle on Friday evening.
During the evening semifinals on Thursday, Dressel achieved the fifth-fastest time (21.58), following his tie for 13th place in the heats. The top spot in the frenzied swimming race, which involves a full-tilt sprint from one end of the pool to the other, was shared by Britain’s Benjamin Proud and Australia’s Cameron McEvoy, who both recorded a time of 21.38.
