Summer McIntosh didn’t just break records in Saanich – she left the sport breathless.
The 18-year-old swimming phenom has torched the Saanich Commonwealth Place pool during the 2025 Canadian Swimming Trials, shattering two world records in three days.
McIntosh opened the six-day meet with a world record in the 400-metre freestyle, setting the tone in front of a jam-packed crowd.
But it was Monday’s 200-metre individual medley (IM) that sent the decibel level inside the building into overdrive.
The Toronto product stopped the clock at 2:05.70 – rewriting the world record previously held by Hungary’s Katinka Hosszu since 2015.
The trials – held from June 7-12 – marked the first time since the pandemic that Vancouver Island hosted a meet of this magnitude.
The Saanich facility, originally built for the 1994 Commonwealth Games, is serving as the qualifier for Canada's squad at the 2025 World Aquatics Championships, which will take place in Singapore from July 26-Aug. 3.
“This was something else,” said Saanich resident Carol Conners, who attended the meet on Tuesday. “We come to these pools to stay fit and socialize, but to see athletes like that – it just blows you away.”
McIntosh, the reigning Olympic gold medallist in the 200 IM from Paris last summer, wasn’t done after her record-breaking openers.
She also clocked the third-fastest time in history in the 800-metre freestyle – setting a new Canadian mark, with a time of 8:05.07.
But it wasn’t a one-swimmer show.
Penny Oleksiak, who won four Olympic medals in 2016, stormed back into the national spotlight with a win in the women’s 50-metre freestyle.
The Toronto sprinter broke the 25-second barrier with a personal-best 24.89 to take the win, narrowly edging Kelowna’s Taylor Ruck (24.96), who holds the Canadian record in the event.
For Oleksiak, whose career was interrupted by a knee injury in 2023, it was a powerful reminder that she’s not done yet.
Alongside McIntosh and Oleksiak, Canadian stars like Josh Liendo, Ilya Kharun and Kylie Masse were among the marquee names competing in Victoria.
Canadian Swimming Trials continue at the Saanich Commonwealth Pool on Tuesday morning with the Men’s 200 metre Butterfly. pic.twitter.com/rChB3aUKan
— Victoria News (@VictoriaNews) June 10, 2025
Saanich Commonwealth Place pool played its part, too.
The building – once a legacy venue from the ’94 Games – showed it’s still capable of hosting Canada’s best. Stands were full, the deck was packed, and swimmers fed off the energy from the Island crowd.
“It took my breath away,” said Conners. “There’s something really special about seeing them in person. It felt personal – like I’ll be cheering them on even louder now when I see them on TV.”
In addition to the big-name stars, more than 30 swimmers from Vancouver Island are also competing this week.
Esquimalt’s 15-year-old Maelle Sanborn, along with Claremont Secondary graduates Bill Dongfang, now swimming for the University of Toronto, and Keir Ogilvie, representing the UVic Vikes, are all in the running.
Parksville’s Nicholas Bennett, who earned two golds and a silver at the 2024 Paris Paralympics, leads the Island’s para swimmers. He is joined by Roy Pan and Sophie Wood, both competing for Team B.C. at the 2025 Canada Summer Games in St. John’s and aiming to break into the national team ranks.
The trials continue throughout the week, concluding Thursday, June 12.
