Three-time Olympic champion Summer McIntosh has announced that she will be joining Bob Bowman and his pro group at the University of Texas following this summer’s World Championships.
McIntosh confirms what she had alluded to in late February, having revealed her plans to move on from the Sarasota Sharks and coach Brent Arckey at the end of the 2024-25 season, specifically mentioning the Texas pro group as a leading option for her next training base.
McIntosh spoke with CBC Sports’ Brittany Maclean in an interview on pool deck at the Toronto Pan Am Sports Centre where she spoke on her move to join Bowman, who has been on an incredible run over the last 14 months, winning the 2024 men’s NCAA title with Arizona State, leading Frenchman Leon Marchand to four gold medals at the Paris Olympics, and then winning a second straight men’s NCAA title with Texas.
“I think there’s a lot of excitement and I think it was something that most people could have guessed even when I started off just because I do similar events to what Bob coaches,” McIntosh said, according to CBC Sports’ Devin Heroux. “Some might say it was basically inevitable, but I think now that it’s actually happening, hopefully people will be excited.
“Bob has been absolutely incredible throughout the whole process, and I knew that at some point I was going to make the move, so him making it so easy and being so welcoming, I’m really excited for next season.”
The 18-year-old confirmed she will be training with the pro group, which includes the likes of Marchand, Regan Smith and Simone Manuel, and not the college team.
McIntosh also spoke on the appeal that comes with aligning with the coach who guided Michael Phelps to a record 23 Olympic gold medals (in very similar events to McIntosh).
“Michael Phelps is the greatest of all time, and he was absolutely incredible, and Bob not only created Michael but so many other amazing swimmers as well, so it just shows the consistency of his coaching and his craft, and it gives me a lot of confidence,” McIntosh said, according to Heroux. “I know I can trust him wholeheartedly with my training.
“I have really big goals and I know that he can match that with the work that he gives me and all of his things that he knows. I can go into a program having full confidence in the training I do day to day and be alongside so many amazing and like-minded athletes and swimmers.”
McIntosh will head to Austin at the end of August, after the 2025 World Championships in Singapore, which will wrap up on August 3.
Back in Toronto to prepare for the upcoming Canadian Swimming Trials in Victoria, McIntosh has spent a good chunk of this year training in France with coach Fred Vergnoux in Antibes.
“Fred’s absolutely amazing,” McIntosh said. “He’s so funny and he’s such a smart guy as well. I can really trust him with my training and the culture he’s created at Antibes and the whole group is so like-minded.
“Everyone knows when they get in the water that he’s going to expect your best and we bring that every single day and I think we kind of feed off each other’s energy.”
McIntosh has entered seven events for the Canadian Trials, but said she only plans on racing five at Worlds. The 400 free, 200 fly, 200 IM and 400 IM are locked in, while her remaining entries come in the 200 free, 800 free and 200 back.
She said she’s added more aerobic distance training to her program of late with the 800 free potentially on her program.
“You need to have a very strong aerobic base to get you through day eight, day nine, and things like that,” she said. “I’m definitely implementing more distance into my training and the French program’s also like that, so definitely do more mileage and stuff like that.”
The Canadian Trials will run from June 7-12 in Victoria, British Columbia.
How does this work with her being Canadian? Same question for Merchand being French. Isn’t it somewhat of a conflict of interest for the head US Olympic coach to be coaching them only for them to go back and win medals for their home countries?
Bob Bowman is not the head US Olympic coach. He was not in Paris, and is unlikely to be named so in Los Angeles.
He was on the French staff in Paris.
BTW – US Olympic head coach is a volunteer position. Makes you think, doesn’t it?
OK, I guess I still see somewhat of a conflict of interest that swimmers who are not US citizens are allowed to train in the US and then represent their own country in competition.
I dont see a conflict of interest given the athletes are paying for a service and the coaches run a business of providing that service to the athletes who are willing to pay. The Australian coaches have trained Leon Marchand. The French coaches have trained Summer. I love the fluidity between nationalities.
There are lots of conflicts of interest on earth, but simply existing as a conflict of interest does not make something problematic. Can you explain more about what you believe makes this conflict of interest problematic?
One question ⁉️ WHY??
Competing with Smith who is her American competitor and has the audacity to trained with her is unbelievable so she needs to cut with the crap because she wants to win all her pursuits like French Leon Marchand, competing with American Carson and Cassas, am I missing something here???
And then she included American Manuel who is trying to find her form again, but Simone is the expertise of the 50m and 100m respectively, so it sounds to me that she is going to do from the 50-800 m because of American Mike Phelps ‘s 23 medals, coached by Bob Bowman’s expertise to produce champions and now opening the door for international swimmers like… Read more »
What?
I’m curious to know who you think is the best swimmer in the country, since there may be a tie after Leeecky.
Gretchen Walsh
Torri Huske
Regan Smith
Kate Douglass
??
Ranking1-4
My ranking is based on the chance to win individual gold in Singapore:
1. Gretchen Walsh (50/100 fly gold)
2. Regan Smith. Regan may finally beat Kaylee McKeown in one of the backstroke events since Kaylee has had training interruptions.
3. Kate Douglas. Someone said she’s not swimming 200IM, so her best chance is in 200 breast, but she will face Chikunova. If Chikunova is sub-par, Kate can beat her.
4. Torri Huske. I doubt she will beat Gretchen Walsh in fly events or MOC in 100 free like what she did last year.
Okay, I think it’s a good idea for Singapore to swap Douglas for Smith.
What about your career and your achievements so far?
One of my favorite swimmers, favorite coach, favorite team 😍😍 Bob and Summer give incredible interviews, can’t wait to hear them talk about her swimming when she’s been there a while!
Out of Leon, Carson, Rex, Hobson, Hubie, Hugo, Shaine, Regan, Simone, Summer How many are NOT in Austin spring 2028? I’m assuming Chase is done.
Where are they gonna be? Unless you mean if they retire?
I assume they think of the possibility of those swimmers change coach and move somewhere else (not in Austin with Bob)
Yeah, I significantly doubt any move before LA
Regan’s not going to be the favorite female at UT anymore.
Wait what do mean favorite female?
This Regan, Summer duo is about to be unstoppable 🔥
Remind me, again. How many individual Olympic gold medals has Regan Smith won?
people said that last year – she couldn’t win an individual olympic gold. try again
Bob Bowman even changed Olympics schedule to benefit Regan Smith
And she couldn’t even win 1 gold in 3 individual events she entered.
I think the Summer half of that equation is doing most of the heavy lifting lol
But how are they even a duo if they compete for different countries? If I were Regan I think I’d be annoyed that Bowman is now going to coach the Canadian who beat her in the 200 fly.
With so many top swimmers joining the Bowman’s pro group how he will be able to provide individual attention to all of them?
The rumors circulating is that many will not be training primarily with him. Some will train primarily with his assistants (and intentionally separate), under Bowman’s guidance. This seemed to work well with him and Herbie at Arizona State.
@Braden Keith, is the assumption that Summer would be primarily training with him? Leon and Regan probably are right?
From what I’m hearing out of Austin, I wouldn’t assume that.
Braden, when you said “intentionally separate”, that’s to avoid the burnout that occurred among some with the 2013/2014 NBAC crew going head to head as often as they did right?
Something in that arena would be my guess, but I can’t put words in anybody’s mouths. We’ll try and get Coach Bowman back on the podcast to chat about it. Not sure what he’ll be able to say.
Sometimes when you have this many talents in one place, “managing the talents” is the hardest part of the coaching. Akin to Phil Jackson in Chicago, LA.
Gotcha. It makes sense to me. Trevor Maida for a while had “@texasmd Sprint Coach” in his bio. Now he just calls himself a swim coach. I figure him and Erik do groups outside of their traditional “distance” or “sprint” now