2022 COMMONWEALTH GAMES
- Friday, July 29 – Wednesday, August 3, 2022
- Birmingham, England
- Sandwell Aquatic Center
- Start Times
- Prelims: 10:30 am local / 5:30 am ET
- Finals: 7:00 pm local / 2:00 pm ET
- LCM (50m)
- Meet Central
- Event Schedule
- Entry List (PDF)
- Live Results
- Day 6 Finals Heat Sheet
- Day 6 Finals Live Recap
WOMEN’S 400 FREESTYLE – FINAL
- World Record: 3:56.40, Ariarne Titmus (AUS) – 2022
- Commonwealth Record: 3:56.40, Ariarne Titmus (AUS) – 2022
Commonwealth Games Record: 4:00.93, Ariarne Titmus (AUS) – 2018- 2018 Commonwealth Champion: Ariarne Titmus (AUS), 4:00.93
- Ariarne Titmus (AUS), 3:58.06 GR
- Summer McIntosh (CAN), 3:59.32 CAN RECORD
- Kiah Melverton (AUS), 4:03.12
- Erika Fairweather (NZL), 4:03.84
- Lani Pallister (AUS), 4:04.43
- Eve Thomas (NZL), 4:09.73
- Ella Jansen (CAN), 4:10.69
- Dune Coetzee (RSA), 4:15.53
In one of the most anticipated races of the Commonwealth Games, rising star Summer McIntosh went head-to-head with world record holder Ariarne Titmus, coming away with the silver medal and a new Canadian record.
McIntosh swam 3:59.32, getting under the Canadian record she set at the World Championships by .07 seconds. At Worlds, she became the fourth woman under the 4:00 barrier. This is McIntosh’s second time under the mark, and she remains the fourth-fastest performer of all time behind Titmus (3:56.40), Katie Ledecky (3:56.46), and Federica Pellegrini (3:59.15).
Split Comparison – McIntosh at Commonwealth Games vs. Worlds
| McIntosh – Commonwealth Games | McIntosh – World Championships | |
| 50 | 28.08 | 27.93 |
| 100 | 58.22 (30.14) | 57.79 (29.86) |
| 150 | 1:28.64 (30.42) | 1:27.85 (30.06) |
| 200 | 1:59.16 (30.52) | 1:58.03 (30.18) |
| 250 | 2:29.45 (30.29) | 2:28.28 (30.25) |
| 300 | 2:59.75 (30.30) | 2:58.73 (30.45) |
| 350 | 3:29.84 (30.09) | 3:29.40 (30.67) |
| 400 | 3:59.32 (29.48) | 3:59.39 (29.99) |
From these splits, McIntosh seems to have switched up her race strategy from Worlds. In Budapest, she rocketed out the first 300 compared to her Birmingham self, flipping with 100 meters to go about a second faster in Budapest than in Birmingham. However, at Commonwealth Games, she had more left in the tank for the final 100, out-splitting her former self decisively. On the final 50, she was about a half second faster to get her hand on the wall just under her old record.
Even with the quick turnaround between Worlds and Commonwealth Games, McIntosh was on fire this week. She swept the IMs, setting new world junior records in both events. She also earned silver medals here in the 400 free, the 4×200 free relay, and the 4×100 medley relay.
She is the female version of Phelps. Only difference is she has a stronger 400free versus 100fly for Phelps, at least for now.
Honestly, Phelps might have broken the World Record in the 400 free if it didn’t conflict with the 400 IM at the Olympics. He had to choose one or the other.
Phelps’s PB is more than ten seconds off the world record (and textile record from 2002). Saying he “might have” broken the world record is a massive stretch, even by SwimSwam standards.
And it’s not like that came early in his career. It’s from Worlds 2005, after he had already won Olympic gold in the 400IM and at the same meet he won gold in the 200 free. He tried the 400 free over the 400IM that meet and failed to make it out of heats and then never tried again.
Saying he “might have” broken the world record is absurd.
No offence to Phelps because he was the GOAT, if you are the GOAT & you had the option of 400IM or 400 free, what would you pick.
Look at Summer, she is currently 3rd best in the 400 free (CURRENTLY), I bet she would continue with the 400 free over the 400IM if she had the potential to break the 400 free WR.
The 400FR is far more prestigious than the 400IM, the fastest in the world in any stroke in any stroke over the fastest in the world over 4 using different strokes, pretty simple really.
First take the gold medals in Paris in the 200 and 400 IM and in the 200 fly, then Summer McIntosh has time to target the 400 free (and 200 free also), but by then, water will have flowed under the bridges of the Seine, perhaps…
Haha, funniest thing I’ve read on Swimswam.
She’s also the Canadian Belmonte with her events – with a higher ceiling.
Can’t wait to see the discussion around where she goes to university. Imagine the value she would bring to a team given her speed and versatility. Summer takes top recruit to the next level!
She seems like a Florida type athlete, but honestly I don’t think she’s gonna go into the NCAA. She’s already getting sponsors
The fact that she signed with a professional team, the Toronto Titans, would complicate her path into the NCAA.
Although oddly enough, everyone in swimming (and maybe the NCAA) seems to shrug and be like “nah bruv you can do a pro team and the NCAA nobody cares,” like Cade Cunningham might still be able to go back to school and finish his eligibility.
If she were to swim at university, inside track for Byron MacDonald at U. of Toronto as coach of the Toronto Titans? I don’t know if she would be eligible to compete under current NCAA rules.
Do you think she’ll swim at NCAAs? She is likely to be a multiple Olympic champion, one of Canada’s most successful ever, by age 17. She could make a truckload more money by just going pro doing university in her own time than doing an NCAA program.
She’s already gone pro. She’s ineligible to do NCAA, as she competed in the ISL last season.
Toronto is a very beautiful metropolis, Summer McIntosh has already been so successful there, why would she move anywhere else?
With this time, McIntosh would have won gold in the men’s 400 free at the 1972 Olympics in Munich. #GOAT
Ledecky WJR of 3:58.37 was set at the age of 17 and a half, about 1.5 years older than Summer is now.
Her first time under 4:00 was swam when she was 16 years and 4 months (4 months older than Summer) with a time of 3:59.82 at 2013 Worlds.
PB before that swim was a 4:03 in prelims, and her PB before that was a 4:04 at Nationals a month earlier (when she was 3 months older than Summer is now).
She went 3:59.8 at 2013 Worlds but I think she had just turned 16
There is a mistake with world championship times. Summer was 3:29,40 at 350 with a 7th split of 30,67.
Ledecky was 3:28,24 with a 30,42 fifty.
Thanks, fixed it!
I think the 100 free split is the way more interesting swim of the day. We are now looking at a time improvement trajectory that makes her a 52.0 100 free swimmer in the next few years? Makes you question her events schedule all over again
Agreed. Summer anchored the 4×100 medley relay in 53.33 right after swimming a 3:59.32 in the 400 FR! I knew she was an amazing talent and incredibly versatile, but this is some serious speed for a middle-distance swimmer. I think having that front end speed puts the 200 WR within her reach before too long.
She may very well end up an elite level 100 free but there’s no way she goes for that as an individual event. Could be a handy leg for Canada’s relay though.
Why would she give up guaranteed golds in the 200 fly or 400IM to prioritise the most competitive event which isn’t close to her strongest? For a chance at maybe a bronze if she’s lucky.
Agree. Her 100 free abilities are a bonus for the CAN relays, but her real strength lies in other events (400 IM/FR, 200 FR/IM/FL). I fully expect she will focus on those for individual events.
She just brought all the relays into play and probably the 200fr
It’s fascinating how talents like hers redefine what we think is even possible – she’s just the most exciting talent since Ledecky, arguabley since Phelps.
She has about a year left (end of 2023) to break Ledecky’s WJR which is less than a 1 second drop needed