Katie Ledecky, Summer McIntosh and a race for the ages at World Swimming Championships

The World Swimming Championships that begin this weekend are headlined by an anticipated showdown not like any within the historical past of the game.

Katie Ledecky needs to change into the primary swimmer to win a seventh world title in a single occasion. Summer McIntosh needs to change into the second swimmer — after Michael Phelps — to win 5 particular person gold medals at a single worlds.

Only a kind of feats can occur at this meet in Singapore.

Ledecky, essentially the most embellished feminine swimmer ever, and McIntosh, an 18-year-old Canadian shortly rising up the all-time ranks, are anticipated to face off in essentially the most anticipated race of worlds — the 800m freestyle ultimate on Aug. 2, the penultimate day of the eight-day competitors.

The World Swimming Championships air stay on Peacock from July 26-Aug. 3.

Some time throughout McIntosh’s coaching in France this yr, she and coach Fred Vergnoux had what he known as a long-term planning dialog.

They talked concerning the 800m free, an occasion McIntosh had dropped from her personal jam-packed main meet schedule after inserting eleventh on the Tokyo Olympics as a 14-year-old. McIntosh is now the world’s greatest all-around swimmer, dominating shorter occasions.

Ledecky gained the 800m free in Tokyo, simply as she did in London and Rio and would do in Paris.

In 2028, she will change into the primary swimmer to win the identical Olympic occasion for a fifth time — some extent additionally introduced up between McIntosh and Vergnoux.

“Perhaps Summer would be the one who wanted to challenge that,” Vergnoux mentioned.

McIntosh accepted the problem a bit early, for these World Championships.

She will face Ledecky in not solely the 400m free, the place they shared the rostrum on the 2022 Worlds and 2024 Olympics, but additionally within the 800m free — Ledecky’s trademark occasion.

“There were many reasons why I picked the 800m,” McIntosh mentioned, citing not solely the possibility to race Ledecky, but additionally as a result of it slotted in effectively for her personal schedule of 5 particular person occasions. “I think it’s, in my opinion, the biggest challenge.”

Ledecky lowered her personal world file three months in the past and has only one 800m free ultimate defeat within the final 15 years (greater than 60 wins).

McIntosh is accountable for that blemish. In February 2024, she beat Ledecky by 5.73 seconds at a neighborhood meet in Orlando. Both skilled in Florida on the time (Ledecky nonetheless does).

“Me beating her in the 800m, and it being a shock to the swimming world, I think says way more about her than it says about me,” McIntosh mentioned in reverence.

McIntosh grew up with a quote from Ledecky on her bed room wall. She has repeatedly mentioned that Ledecky has “revolutionized” swimming.

Gretchen Walsh has by no means gained a person world title in a long-course pool. She might depart worlds with 4 of them.

“It’s always a great race when we’re next to each other,” Ledecky mentioned after their most up-to-date head-to-head, when she overtook McIntosh to win a 400m free on May 1 in her second-best time ever.

McIntosh’s aggressive starvation was obvious when she mirrored on her Paris Olympic efficiency: gold medals within the 200m and 400m particular person medleys and 200m butterfly and silver within the 400m free behind Australian Ariarne Titmus.

“I wanted to get four golds,” she started her reply in a spring interview.

Overall, McIntosh mentioned she was “super happy” with how issues turned out, albeit “a bit disappointed” with the runner-up within the 400m free.

She began working with Vergnoux after Christmas — cross-training included her first time cross-country snowboarding.

She opted to go from 4 particular person occasions in Paris to 5 each at these worlds and on the 2028 LA Games. She hasn’t determined but if her 2028 schedule may even embody the 800m free or a unique fifth occasion.

The solely swimmer to win 5 particular person occasions at one Olympics or worlds is Phelps. The legend FaceTimed McIntosh after final month’s Canadian trials. He congratulated her on turning into the primary swimmer to interrupt a world file in three completely different particular person occasions at one meet since his 2008 Beijing Games masterpiece.

McIntosh didn’t break Ledecky’s 800m free world file at trials, however she did publish the third-fastest time in historical past. Her 8:05.07 was 95 hundredths off the world file. The two mix for the 15 quickest occasions in historical past: 13 for Ledecky, two for McIntosh.

“(Ledecky) always brings the best out of me, which is also why I’m never nervous before a race (with her) because I know it’s going to be a fight to the end,” McIntosh said. “I’m going to have the best result because she’s going to push me to do it.”

Leon Marchand went from 4 particular person occasions to 2 on the World Championships in Singapore.