Canadian swimmer Summer McIntosh made a significant career decision earlier in the year by choosing to train under Bob Bowman, the former coach of legendary swimmer Michael Phelps. Under Bowman, McIntosh currently trains at the University of Texas at Austin, having moved on from the Sarasota Sharks, where she previously practiced.
These initial training sessions reflected on her impressive performances at the US Open, where she clinched two gold medals in the competition. Following this successful campaign, McIntosh highlighted her experiences at Bowman’s training camp.
Summer McIntosh Reflects on Her Experience With Former Phelps’ Coach Bob Bowman
In her first competition since the World Aquatics Championships in Singapore, McIntosh bagged gold medals in the 400m freestyle and 200m butterfly, demonstrating notable improvements since joining Bowman’s camp. The Canadian swimmer also clinched a bronze in the 100m butterfly, in addition to trying her hands at her non-regular events, the 100m backstroke and 100m breaststroke, finishing seventh and 16th, respectively.
When asked about her experience with Bowman after the event, McIntosh said, “I’ve absolutely loved it here so far. I mean, it was a little bit wonky just being sick, but other than that, it’s such an amazing environment to train in. Everyone’s been so welcoming, and obviously Bob’s the best of the best. He has been an amazing coach, along with Erik (Posegay) and Trevor (Maida) as well.
“We were just up at OTC for three weeks, the pro team. So that was a really good bonding experience for all of us, and definitely got us in shape very quickly,” McIntosh further added.
In addition to McIntosh, several other promising young talents, such as Leon Marchand and Regan Smith, train with Phelps’ former coach, Bowman.
McIntosh Recounts Her Experience With Regan Smith in Training Sessions
Speaking in a recent interview with SwimSwam, McIntosh recently revealed how she has fared in training camps alongside her US counterpart, Smith. Similar to the Canadian, Smith has been part of Bowman’s camp, joining the coach in 2021.
McIntosh noted that they don’t interact much, as they both have different specializations outside of butterfly races, leading to other forms of training. “I think I’m kind of all over the place. We do matchups sometimes in practice when we’re both kind of doing fly, but other than that, I have to do my freestyle distance, IM, and she’s got her backstroke,” she said.
The two current training mates, McIntosh and Smith, put up a stellar competition in the 200m butterfly event at the World Championships in Singapore a few months ago. The Canadian swimmer bagged the gold medal, boasting a time of 2:01.99, while Smith settled for the second position.