\t\t\t\t\t2026 PAN PACIFIC CHAMPIONSHIPS<\/p>\n
The last time the Pan Pacific Championships were held,\u00a0Summer McIntosh<\/a>\u00a0was just 11 years old.<\/p>\n Now, eight years later, she\u2019s the best swimmer in the world and the one everyone\u2019s looking to as the main storyline of the 2026 Pan Pacs in Irvine.<\/p>\n McIntosh will carry a heavy load on the Canadian roster, with some of the country\u2019s other top names in recent years, such as\u00a0Josh Liendo<\/a> and\u00a0Kylie Masse<\/a>, opting not to compete in the event, and 2024 Olympic and 2025 World Championship medalist\u00a0Ilya Kharun<\/a> being in the process of changing his sporting citizenship to represent the United States.<\/p>\n TEAM CANADA\u2019S 2018 PAN PAC SNAPSHOT<\/p>\n The Canadian team largely struggled at the 2018 Pan Pacs, winning just two gold and nine total medals\u2014one of which came from open water.<\/p>\n Taylor Ruck<\/a>, who was coming off a record-tying eight medal haul at the Commonwealth Games a few months earlier<\/a>, led the way for the team in Tokyo, winning gold in the women\u2019s 200 free, silver in the 200 back and bronze in the 100 free to go along with helping the Canadian women win a pair of relay bronzes.<\/p>\n Kylie Masse<\/a> won gold in the women\u2019s 100 back,\u00a0Sydney Pickrem<\/a> was the silver medalist in the women\u2019s 200 IM, and\u00a0Yuri Kisil<\/a> claimed bronze in the men\u2019s 50 free. In the men\u2019s open water event,\u00a0Eric Hedlin<\/a> landed on the podium in third.<\/p>\n Canada finished a distant fourth on the medal table, with the United States dominating (20 gold, 45 total medals) and Australia edging out Japan for the #2 spot.<\/p>\n STORYLINES TO FOLLOW<\/p>\n Summer McIntosh<\/a>: WR Watch, Schedule Options & Coming Off Illness<\/p>\n The last time we saw\u00a0Summer McIntosh<\/a>\u00a0competing she left everyone\u2019s jaw on the floor, breaking the super-suited world record in the women\u2019s 200 fly<\/a>, before withdrawing from the remainder of the Canadian Swimming Trials less than two days later due to illness<\/a>.<\/p>\n That was over a month ago, and since McIntosh had no real incentive to continue competing through the rest of the Canadian Trials given the fact that once you qualify for Pan Pacs in one event, you can swim as many as you want at the meet, it\u2019s more than likely her withdrawal was precautionary and she\u2019ll be back at 100% in Irvine.<\/p>\n Looking towards the competition, it will be interesting to see what type of program McIntosh is willing to take on.<\/p>\n Will she expand her lineup out to include the 200 free, an event she\u2019s been vocal about wanting to return to on the international stage in pursuit of breaking the 1:53 barrier<\/a>, or will she dial things and focus on one individual event per day, with more of a focus on breaking world records?<\/p>\n Considering the way\u00a0Bob Bowman<\/a> typically approached the mid-quad \u201coff\u201d year between the Olympics and World Championships with\u00a0Michael Phelps<\/a>, using it as more experimental, there\u2019s reason for optimism that she might be willing to take on a tough double without fear of it going sideways.<\/p>\n Now that the entry lists have been released, we have a better idea of what she\u2019ll swim. Initially, the 800 free and 200 back might\u2019ve been on the table, or at least a consideration, but she hasn\u2019t entered either.<\/p>\n Potential McIntosh Schedule<\/p>\n Day 1 \u2013 200 free, 200 fly, mixed 4\u00d7100 medley relay McIntosh\u2019s schedule looks fairly straightforward outside of the opening day of competition.<\/p>\n She\u2019ll swim the 400 IM on Day 2, the 400 free on Day 3 and the 200 IM on Day 4, and most likely, the women\u2019s relays on all three days.<\/p>\n The big question comes on the opening day, where the 200 free and 200 fly coincide. Although there\u2019s only one event, the 100 back, in between, there\u2019s nearly an hour (7:29 pm \u2013 8:22 pm) between the start of each race on the projected timeline<\/a>, so there\u2019s a definite possibility she swims both.<\/p>\n Especially since McIntosh has already broken the world record in the 200 fly this year, this looks like a great opportunity to take her best shot at a fast time in the 200 free, and then see if she can turnaround in just under an hour and win the 200 fly against a relatively weak field with no Regan Smith<\/a>.<\/p>\n If McIntosh does pull off the double on Day 1, she\u2019ll be well on her way to potentially five individual gold medals in Irvine, with the 400 free battle with\u00a0Katie Ledecky<\/a>\u00a0and\u00a0Lani Pallister<\/a>, and a potential 200 IM clash with Kate Douglass<\/a>, being her biggest hurdles.<\/p>\n However, McIntosh hasn\u2019t lost to Ledecky in the 400 free at a major international meet since 2023, and she was over two seconds clear of Ledecky and Pallister at the 2025 Worlds, so she\u2019s definitely a big favorite there.<\/p>\n In the 200 IM, McIntosh beat Douglass at the Olympics in Paris and then dominated at the 2025 World Championships with Douglass not in the field. We might not see Douglass in the event again at Pan Pacs, given that it comes directly before the 50 free, the event in which Douglass briefly held the world record in earlier this year.<\/p>\n Ryan Lochte<\/a> owns the record of most gold medals won at a single Pan Pacs after claiming six events in 2010, though two of those came in relays. Even if McIntosh wins five individual events, it looks virtually impossible for her to add another given the relative weakness of the Canadian relays compared to the Americans and the Aussies.<\/p>\n Can Ruck Recreate 2018 Magic?<\/p>\n The last year the Pan Pacs were held, 2018, was the best of Taylor Ruck<\/a>\u2018s career.<\/p>\n As we mentioned off the top, she piled up a record-tying eight-medal haul at the Commonwealth Games, and then followed up by winning five medals at Pan Pacs to become the most decorated Canadian ever at a single edition of the meet<\/a>.<\/p>\n It\u2019s been an up and down eight years since then, but Ruck has been on some of the best form we\u2019ve seen from in the 2020s this year, setting a new best time in the 100 back (58.37) for the first time in seven years<\/a> while swimming her fastest time in the 100 free (53.06) since 2018.<\/p>\n Looking towards this year\u2019s Pan Pacs and what the medal opportunities might be for Ruck, she\u2019s got a legitimate shot in the 100 free and 100 back.<\/p>\n Despite ranking 5th on the entry lists in the 100 back, given that only two Americans can make the \u2018A\u2019 final and\u00a0Kaylee McKeown<\/a> isn\u2019t competing, Ruck moves into the bronze medal position, with Australian\u00a0Iona Anderson<\/a>\u00a0and Canadian teammate\u00a0Ingrid Wilm<\/a> being her biggest challengers among those seeded behind her.<\/p>\n In the 100 free, Ruck is eighth-fastest on paper, but actually moves up to 4th given the two-per-country, only trailing whichever two Americans make the \u2018A\u2019 final and Meg Harris<\/a>.<\/p>\n Ruck will also have a chance to medal in the 50 free, and has a decent chance to final in the 50 and 100 fly. She\u2019ll also play a key role on the Canadian relays with the likes of\u00a0Penny Oleksiak<\/a> and\u00a0Kylie Masse<\/a> missing from the roster.<\/p>\n Tierney, Dawson Represent Best Medal Hopes For Men\u2019s Team<\/p>\n Without Josh Liendo<\/a> and Ilya Kharun<\/a>, the Canadian men are without a bonafide star who\u2019s a lock to medal.<\/p>\n On paper, their best hope for a spot on the podium, at least in an individual event, comes in Blake Tierney<\/a>, who broke out with a 4th-place finish at the 2025 World Championships in the 200 back (1:55.03 in semis) while also becoming the first Canadian sub-53 in the 100 back (52.95).<\/p>\n Tierney\u2019s national record time ranks him 3rd on the psych sheets in the 200 back, only trailing Americans Jack Aikins<\/a> and\u00a0Keaton Jones<\/a>. A medal is up for grabs in this event to be sure, with only Japan\u2019s\u00a0Hidekazu Takehara<\/a> and\u00a0Yumeki Kojima<\/a> looking like they could upset Tierney for the podium.<\/p>\n In the 100 back, Tierney is basically in the same situation, seeded 5th behind four Americans, though only two of them can advance to the \u2018A\u2019 final.<\/p>\n However, he wasn\u2019t on top form at the Canadian Trials last month, clocking 53.63 in the 100 back and 1:58.76 in the 200 back, so he\u2019ll need to be back closer to where he was last summer in order to fight for a podium spot.<\/p>\n Raben Dommann<\/a> was close behind Tierney in the 100 back at Trials, setting a new PB of 53.79, and given the uncertainty of the Americans in the event, there\u2019s a chance that something in the 53.2-5 range reaches the podium.<\/p>\n They\u2019ve also got an outside medal chance in rising breaststroke star\u00a0Oliver Dawson<\/a>, who nows owns all three national records in the 50 breast (27.29), 100 breast (59.33) and 200 breast (2:08.39), setting the latter mark en route to winning silver at the Commonwealth Games.<\/p>\n The Japanese men are stacked in breaststroke, and the Americans have stud sprinter\u00a0Van Mathias<\/a> as a near lock to the podium in the 50 and 100, so Dawson\u2019s only real chance at a medal looks to be in the 200. Assuming Japan goes 1-2, he\u2019ll need to get by the Americans, which includes two of\u00a0AJ Pouch<\/a>,\u00a0Josh Matheny<\/a> and\u00a0Campbell McKean<\/a>, and Australian\u00a0Zac Stubblety-Cook<\/a>, who he beat head-to-head at the Commonwealth Games. So there\u2019s a chance, especially since none of those three Americans has broken 2:10 so far in 2026.<\/p>\n There\u2019s also\u00a0Finlay Knox<\/a>, who was the 2024 world champion in the 200 IM, but there\u2019s a tough field in that event led by Americans\u00a0Shaine Casas<\/a> and\u00a0Carson Foster<\/a>, and Japan\u2019s\u00a0Tomoyuki Matsushita<\/a> and\u00a0Yumeki Kojima<\/a>.<\/p>\n OTHER SWIMMERS TO WATCH<\/p>\n Mary-Sophie Harvey<\/a> \u2013\u00a0Has narrowed her focus with only two entries in the women\u2019s 200 and 400 IM. Taking into account that only two swimmers per country can make the \u2018A\u2019 final, she ranks 5th in the 200 IM and 6th in the 400 IM. A medal looks like a long shot, but even a modest drop in the 400 IM could sneak her onto the podium, and she should be in the mix in the 200 IM while also being a key cog on the Canadian relays. FULL CANADIAN PAN PAC ROSTER<\/p>\n Women<\/p>\n Sienna Angove<\/a> \u2013 50\/100\/200\/400 free Men<\/p>\n Javier Acevedo<\/a> \u2013 50 free, 50 back, 50 breast, 50 fly
\nDay 2 \u2013 400 IM, 4\u00d7200 free relay
\nDay 3 \u2013 400 free, 4\u00d7100 free relay
\nDay 4 \u2013 200 IM, 4x 100 medley relay<\/p>\n
\nAlexanne Lepage<\/a> \u2013\u00a0Rising star set new bests in the 100 breast (1:06.08) and 200 breast (2:23.03) en route to her Trials wins, and all of a sudden finds herself in the medal hunt after failing to earn a second swim last summer at Worlds. Lepage is seeded 4th in the 200 breast and 5th in the 100 breast this week, and is within striking distance of the longstanding super-suited national record in the 100 (1:05.74), so she\u2019ll be one to watch.
\nSophie Angus<\/a> \u2013\u00a0Similar to Lepage, put herself in the medal conversation after dropping a big best time of 30.28 in the 50 breast at Trials. The Canadian Record of 30.23 has been on the books for 17 years, set by Amanda Reason<\/a> in 2009, which was a world record at the time. Also, can Angus translate that 50 speed to a new 100 PB, possibly sneaking under 1:06?
\nIngrid Wilm<\/a> \u2013\u00a0With no\u00a0Kaylee McKeown<\/a>, the bronze medal is up for grabs in the women\u2019s 50 and 100 back, and at her best, Wilm will be in contention. Also, without\u00a0Kylie Masse<\/a>, she could be the swimmer who takes over as the women\u2019s medley relay lead-off, assuming Taylor Ruck<\/a> swims free.
\nLorne Wigginton<\/a> \u2013\u00a0Coming off breaking the 18-year-old Canadian Record in the men\u2019s 400 IM at Trials and then winning bronze in the event at the Commonwealth Games, the 20-year-old Wigginton will gain more big-meet experience here at Pan Pacs. And even though there\u2019s a daunting field in the 400 IM, the two-per-country rule means he should be able to make the final, and if he\u2019s able to get under 4:11, he\u2019ll be mixing it up in the top five.
\nRaben Dommann<\/a> \u2013\u00a0Dommann is an incredible story, coming back from a stroke in 2025 to reach career-best form and make the Pan Pac team in 2026. A medal will be a tall order, but he\u2019s very capable of being a finalist in the 100 back after setting a PB of 53.79 in early July.<\/p>\n
\nSophie Angus<\/a> \u2013 50\/100\/200 breast
\nJulie Brousseau<\/a> \u2013 200\/400\/800 free, 200\/400 IM
\nSummer Cardwell<\/a> \u2013 100\/200 free, 200 IM
\nElla Cosgrove<\/a> \u2013 200\/400\/800 free
\nBrooklyn Douthwright<\/a> \u2013 100\/200 free, 100 fly, 200 IM
\nLeilani Fack<\/a> \u2013 50\/100 free, 50\/100 fly
\nEmma Finlin<\/a> \u2013 800\/1500 free, 400 IM
\nSarah Fournier<\/a> \u2013 50\/100 free
\nMatea Gigovic<\/a> \u2013 50\/100 free, 50\/100 fly
\nMary-Sophie Harvey<\/a> \u2013 200\/400 IM
\nMadison Kryger<\/a> \u2013 50\/100\/200 back
\nAlexanne Lepage<\/a> \u2013 50\/100\/200 breast
\nReina Liu<\/a> \u2013 50\/100 free, 50\/100 back
\nSummer McIntosh<\/a> \u2013 200\/400 free, 200 fly, 200\/400 IM
\nEmma O\u2019Croinin<\/a> \u2013 50\/100\/200 free, 200 back
\nTaylor Ruck<\/a> \u2013 50\/100 free, 100 back, 50\/100 fly
\nLeah Tigert<\/a> \u2013 50\/100\/200 free
\nKatherine Warkentin<\/a> \u2013 400\/800\/1500 free
\nIngrid Wilm<\/a> \u2013 100 free, 50\/100\/200 back<\/p>\n
\nFrancis Brennan<\/a> \u2013 100\/200 free, 200 back, 200 IM
\nLoic Courville Fortin<\/a> \u2013 50\/100\/200 back
\nOliver Dawson<\/a> \u2013 50\/100\/200 breast
\nRaben Dommann<\/a> \u2013 50\/100\/200 back, 100 fly
\nEthan Ekk<\/a> \u2013 100\/200\/400 free, 100\/200 back, 200 IM
\nRuslan Gaziev<\/a> \u2013 50\/100\/200 free, 50 back
\nApollo Hess<\/a> \u2013 50\/100\/200 breast
\nTristan Jankovics<\/a> \u2013 200 free, 200\/400 IM
\nLaon Kim<\/a> \u2013 50\/100\/200 free, 100 fly, 200 IM
\nAiden Kirk<\/a> \u2013 400\/800\/1500 free, 200 fly, 400 IM
\nYuri Kisil<\/a> \u2013 50\/100 free, 50 fly
\nFinlay Knox<\/a> \u2013 100 free, 50\/100 fly, 200 IM
\nBenjamin Loewen<\/a> \u2013 200 back, 200 fly, 200 IM
\nSebastian Paulins<\/a> \u2013 800\/1500 free
\nAntoine Sauve<\/a> \u2013 50\/100\/200 free
\nAnton Semenyuk<\/a> \u2013 100 free, 100\/200 fly, 200 IM
\nFilip Senc-Samardzic<\/a> \u2013 50\/100\/200 free, 50\/100 fly
\nBlake Tierney<\/a> \u2013 50 free, 50\/100\/200 back
\nJordi Vilchez<\/a> \u2013 200\/400 free, 200 fly
\nChris Weeks<\/a> \u2013 50\/100 free, 50\/100 fly
\nLorne Wigginton<\/a> \u2013 200\/400 free, 200\/400 IM<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"2026 PAN PACIFIC CHAMPIONSHIPS The last time the Pan Pacific Championships were held,\u00a0Summer McIntosh\u00a0was just 11 years old.…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":163096,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[40357,52424,39014,40755,39015,10070,40756,39017,39018,40331,39997,52425,17,52426,41079,39999,41607,40000,52427,39022,39973,10073,39974,52428,39975,39023,52429,52430,40294,40762,10075,52431,39024,52432,41851,40495,40496,39978,39026,52433,10079,40003,40362,40005,39027,40006,39028,40764,52434,52435,39029,39982,10082,52436,40010,40364,52437,40365,41874,52438,40011,39030,40013,39031,39983,39032,52439,39984,52440,52441,40366,52442],"class_list":["post-163095","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-canada","tag-aiden-kirk","tag-aj-pouch","tag-alexanne-lepage","tag-amanda-reason","tag-antoine-sauve","tag-anton-semenyuk","tag-apollo-hess","tag-benjamin-loewen","tag-blake-tierney","tag-bob-bowman","tag-brooklyn-douthwright","tag-campbell-mckean","tag-canada","tag-carson-foster","tag-chris-weeks","tag-ella-cosgrove","tag-emma-finlin","tag-emma-ocroinin","tag-eric-hedlin","tag-ethan-ekk","tag-filip-senc-samardzic","tag-finlay-knox","tag-francis-brennan","tag-hidekazu-takehara","tag-ilya-kharun","tag-ingrid-wilm","tag-iona-anderson","tag-jack-aikins","tag-javier-acevedo","tag-jordi-vilchez","tag-josh-liendo","tag-josh-matheny","tag-julie-brousseau","tag-kate-douglass","tag-katherine-warkentin","tag-katie-ledecky","tag-kaylee-mckeown","tag-keaton-jones","tag-kylie-masse","tag-lani-pallister","tag-laon-kim","tag-leah-tigert","tag-leilani-fack","tag-loic-courville-fortin","tag-lorne-wigginton","tag-madison-kryger","tag-mary-sophie-harvey","tag-matea-gigovic","tag-meg-harris","tag-michael-phelps","tag-oliver-dawson","tag-penny-oleksiak","tag-raben-dommann","tag-regan-smith","tag-reina-liu","tag-ruslan-gaziev","tag-ryan-lochte","tag-sarah-fournier","tag-sebastian-paulins","tag-shaine-casas","tag-sienna-angove","tag-sophie-angus","tag-summer-cardwell","tag-summer-mcintosh","tag-sydney-pickrem","tag-taylor-ruck","tag-tomoyuki-matsushita","tag-tristan-jankovics","tag-van-mathias","tag-yumeki-kojima","tag-yuri-kisil","tag-zac-stubblety-cook"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/canada\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/163095","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/canada\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/canada\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/canada\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/canada\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=163095"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/canada\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/163095\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/canada\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/163096"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/canada\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=163095"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/canada\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=163095"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/canada\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=163095"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}