World Championships: Summer McIntosh and Katie Grimes Set to Clash in 400 Individual Medley

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World Championships: Summer McIntosh and Katie Grimes Set to Clash in 400 Individual Medley

Only one individual event will be contested as part of the final morning of preliminaries at the World Championships, but it certainly features an intriguing storyline. When the women’s 400-meter individual medley kicks off Saturday action at the Duna Arena in Budapest, a teenage duel will take center stage.

Canada’s Summer McIntosh and American Katie Grimes enter the 400 medley as leading medal contenders, with the 15-year-old McIntosh the clear favorite. That status was attained earlier this year when McIntosh produced a national-record time of 4:29.12, making her the No. 3 performer in history. Meanwhile, Grimes clocked 4:36.17 at the United States International Team Trials and is rapidly improving in the event.

Both teens, who narrowly missed medals at last summer’s Olympic Games in Tokyo, come into the event with momentum. McIntosh has already captured the world title in the 200 butterfly (2:05.20; world junior record) and was the silver medalist behind Katie Ledecky in the 400 freestyle (3:59.39). More, she established a world junior record in the 200 freestyle, as she led off the Canadian 800 freestyle relay (bronze medal) in 1:54.79.

Grimes hasn’t been as busy as her fellow teen from North of the Border, but she has been impressive. As Ledecky stormed to another world crown in the 1500 freestyle, Grimes picked up the silver medal in 15:44.89.

Now, as a dessert of sorts, fans will be treated to a clash of the teenagers in an event known as the decathlon of the sport. Whatever unfolds, it will be a glimpse of the future, as McIntosh and Grimes figure to be longtime stars in the sport.

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