Summer McIntosh and Léon Marchand were back in action at the 2026 Pro Swim Series Austin on Friday (16 January), as the swimmers coached by Bob Bowman continued to shine at the season opener held in their de facto training pool.

McIntosh showed no signs of fatigue or weakness in the women’s 400m individual medley, storming away from the field to win the race in a time of 4:28.13. She was followed to the wall by Team USA’s Emma Weyant, who finished the race nearly 12 seconds later in a time of 4:40.11.

The dominant swim came one night after the Canadian star won the women’s 200m individual medley in remarkably similar fashion, confirming her place as one of the best medley swimmers heading into the 2026 season.

“I just have an extra boost of confidence knowing I’ve started to master this race when it comes to splits and things like that,” she told SwimSwam, noting the impact of her coach. 

“Bob is the best, especially when it comes to an event like the 400 IM. We’ve done lots of practices that are a thousand times harder than a 400 IM race.”

Fellow Bowman protégé Marchand oozed with a similar amount of confidence and showmanship as well, scoring a commanding victory in the men’s 400m individual medley.

The four-time Olympic champion led the race from start to finish, touching the wall in a time of 4:13.21 – more than five seconds ahead of the next fastest swimmer. Team USA’s Bobby Finke claimed runner-up honours, clocking 4:18.35 to beat Wilson York (4:22.20).

It was a rough night for Finke, who’d already played second fiddle to Ireland’s Daniel Wiffen in men’s 800m freestyle. While Finke remained within striking distance for most of the race, he simply couldn’t find the speed needed to overtake Wiffen, who finished in a time of 7:50.37. 

Elsewhere, Team USA’s Claire Weinstein produced a time of 1:56.62 to win the women’s 200m freestyle, while Van Mathias (26.89) edged out Kyrgyzstan’s Denis Petrashov (27.12) in the men’s 50m backstroke. 

Rising star Ryan Erisman gave the home crowd a reason to celebrate by winning the men’s 200m freestyle in a time of 1:46.66, while Skyler Smith authored a thrilling upset in the women’s 50m breaststroke with a time of 30.43 seconds.

Action continues on Saturday (16 January), with finals in the 200m butterfly, 50m butterfly, 200m breaststroke, 50m backstroke, 100m freestyle and the women’s 800m freestyle – where Katie Ledecky is set to star once more.