By Tim Wilson
If you Google Summer McIntosh, you would most likely get her Instagram account as the first result from the search engine. The next result for most browsers will be Wikipedia. If you click the Wikipedia link, you will be greeted by the following details:
Summer Ann McIntosh (born August 18, 2006) is a Canadian competitive swimmer. She is a three-time Olympic champion, four-time World Aquatics champion, and two-time Commonwealth Games gold medallist. Noted for her strength in medley and butterfly events, she is the current world record holder in the 400-metre individual medley. Also, she holds the Olympic and textile records in the 200-metre butterfly event and the Olympic record in the 200-metre individual medley.
McIntosh first gained recognition when, at age 14, she was the youngest member of the Canadian team for the 2020 Summer Olympics, where she achieved a fourth-place finish in the 400-metre freestyle. The following year, she became the youngest World Aquatics champion in swimming in over a decade and the first Canadian to win two gold medals at a single World Championships, for which she was dubbed a “teen swimming sensation.”
In March and April 2023, in five days, she set her first and second world records in the 400-metre freestyle and 400 individual medley events at the Canadian national trials. McIntosh’s performance at the 2024 Summer Olympics, in which she won four individual medals (three gold and one silver), further increased her fame, with Time (magazine) dubbing it the “Summer of Summer.”.
After reading these details about her, the first thing that came to my mind was how is this possible even though I know this is not fake news. Thinking about it critically brought me to 3 conclusions.
- Her Family – McIntosh is the daughter of Greg McIntosh and former Canadian Olympic swimmer Jill Horstead. Her older sister Brooke is a competitive pair skater. The principal role of a family is to guide and guard. Her mom, the former swimmer, is a great guide, and her dad is a great guard. Most of us are not blessed by such family assets, but we create one for our children by intentionally selecting the right spouse or having a mentor and role models who can positively influence our choices in life.
- Her Decisions—Those who have knowledgeable parents do not always listen to or follow their parent’s guide. Some follow the advice of friends or even social media influencers in making choices from careers to who to date. Summer McIntosh made her decision from a reliable and tested source—her parents.
3. Her Discipline—One thing that is common to all Olympians and high achievers is DISCIPLINE. Discipline in paying the price of greatness that her sport/career requires. Every profession or career requires a work ethic and concentration that cannot be compromised—she paid the price.
Living an extraordinary life is within the reach of everyone. Coming from a supportive family can be a game changer; however, there are individuals like the basketball great LeBron James, who was raised by a single mother but turned out amazingly well.
The most important aspect of Summer’s progress and success can be attributed to her personal choices.
