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\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t\tAP Photo\/Jae C. Hong<\/p>\n
\t\t\t\t\t\t\tAugust 13, 2026\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n
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\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t![\"Sharing](\"https:\/\/olympic.ca\/wp-content\/themes\/canadianolympiccommittee\/img\/team-canada-icons\/team-canada-profile-share-red.svg\")
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Canada kicked off the 2026 Pan Pacific Swimming Championships on Wednesday night with an impressive five medals in the pool in Irvine, California. <\/p>\n
While Summer McIntosh<\/a> came just shy of the victory in the women\u2019s 200m freestyle, Blake Tierney<\/a> had a breakthrough moment in the men\u2019s 100m backstroke, winning his first international gold medal. <\/p>\n Tierney, a 24-year-old from Saskatoon, edged out American Will Modglin in a tight finish that came down to the final lunge for the wall. Tierney clocked in at 53.18, touching 0.19 ahead of Modglin. That time is about a quarter of a second slower than the national record he set at last year\u2019s World Aquatics Championships. <\/p>\n \u201cI think when I look back on this, I\u2019ll be pretty happy. It was not a best time, but pretty close,\u201d said Tierney. \u201cThere is still a lot of work I can do on it. I\u2019m happy with how that went.\u201d<\/p>\n Tierney added that he was a little thrown off by the lights reflecting off the splashing water. He had never trained in an outdoor pool at night before, let alone race in those conditions. But he succeeded in working through those difficulties. <\/p>\n \u201cTraining pays off. There were lots of ups and downs this year, but at the end of the day I had a good year of training and it\u2019s coming together,\u201d he said. <\/p>\n Meanwhile, McIntosh was racing in her first international 200m freestyle race since the 2023 World Aquatics Championships. In the final, she ended up in a tough battle with Australian Lani Pallister, who out-touched the Canadian by just 0.19 for the gold medal. McIntosh posted a time of 1:53.86 to easily take the silver medal over another Australian, Erika Fairweather. <\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019m just getting back into the 200 free and have so much more than that,\u201d said McIntosh, just a few days away from her 20th birthday. \u201cIt\u2019s disappointing, but I got to learn from it. I have to look back on my splits. I think I was just overthinking it rather than just racing. Tonight just wasn\u2019t the night for me.\u201d<\/p>\n This is McIntosh\u2019s first time competing at the Pan Pacific Championships, which are usually held every four years in a year without the Olympic Games or World Aquatics Championships. The competition features athletes from countries outside of Europe, which has its own continental championships. The Pan Pacific Championships were last held in 2018. The 2022 edition was cancelled after the COVID-19 pandemic led to a reshuffling of the international competition calendar. <\/p>\n Taylor Ruck<\/a> stood on three podiums on Wednesday night. After breaking the national record in the women\u2019s 50m butterfly during the preliminary heats, she lowered it once more in the final. Ruck earned the bronze medal with her time of 25.23, which dropped 0.38 off her previous Canadian record. American Gretchen Walsh won the gold in 24.65. <\/p>\n A little while later, Ruck swam to bronze in the women\u2019s 100m backstroke, posting a time of 58.40 to finish behind Americans Katharine Berkoff (57.93) and world record holder Regan Smith (58.11).<\/p>\n \u201cI went out pretty fast. The last 25 I felt the legs a little bit. I definitely went out for it. I wanted it,\u201d said Ruck. <\/p>\n She closed out the evening by anchoring Canada to the bronze medal in the mixed 4x100m medley relay. That team also included Ingrid Wilm<\/a>, Oliver Dawson, and Finlay Knox<\/a>. Their time of 3:43.22 put them ahead of a second Canadian team\u2014composed of Tierney, Alexanne Lepage, Mary-Sophie Harvey<\/a>, and Ruslan Gaziev<\/a>\u2014for the last spot on the podium. <\/p>\n \u201cIt was super exciting. We had the two Canadian teams and it could have gone either way between the two teams because both were equally strong,\u201d said Knox. <\/p>\n The gold medal was won by an American quartet that set a world record time of 3:36.70. Australia was second in 3:39.30. <\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/canada\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/CP176743680.jpg\")
Summer McIntosh, of Canada, looks at the scoreboard after competing in the women\u2019s 200-meter freestyle final at the Pan Pacific Swimming Championships in Irvine, Calif., Wednesday, Aug. 12, 2026. (AP Photo\/Jae C. Hong)<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/canada\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/CP176744029.jpg\")
Gold medalist Gretchen Walsh, center, of the United States, silver medalist Kate Douglass, left, also of the United States, and bronze medalist Taylor Ruck, of Canada, pose on the podium during a medal ceremony for the women\u2019s 50-meter butterfly at the Pan Pacific Swimming Championships in Irvine, Calif., Wednesday, Aug. 12, 2026. (AP Photo\/Jae C. Hong)<\/p>\n