17-Year-Old Swimming Star Makes Firm Admission About Michael Phelps After Announcing Career Move

When Olympic swimming legend Michael Phelps’ former coach Bob Bowman remarked recently that “nobody worked harder in the Olympic space than @m_phelps00,” it was not another medal tally or time on the clock that drew attention. It was the recognition of discipline that resonated with both Phelps himself and a new generation of athletes now choosing Bowman as their guide. That acknowledgment of effort rather than achievement sets the stage for the next chapter in Bowman’s coaching career and the swimmers placing their trust in his methods.

Phelps, who still holds 29 world records in long course meters, responded with a brief note of gratitude, “Thx @coach_bowman.” For a man who first set a world record in 2001 at the age of 15 years and nine months, his coach’s words carried familiar weight. And the same partnership that once yielded eight gold medals in Beijing also produced one of the sport’s most enduring stories. Ahead of the 100-meter butterfly final in 2008, Bowman broke from his usual silence to tell Phelps, “Cavic said it would be good for swimming if you did not win eight golds and he was the guy to do it.” The reaction was immediate. “Michael physically got bigger and said, ‘He said what?’” Bowman recalled. That exchange was enough to sharpen Phelps for what became his seventh victory of those Games, secured by one-hundredth of a second.

And now, seventeen-year-old Canadian swimmer Summer McIntosh has placed herself in the same orbit. After confirming in May that she would relocate to Austin, Texas, to train under Bowman, McIntosh made a point of explaining her choice. “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,” she said to CBC Sports. Already the owner of three Olympic gold medals and eight world titles, McIntosh has chosen to pursue her next stage (probably starting from late August) with the same coach who guided Phelps’ band, more recently, France’s Leon Marchand.

Bowman’s current program at the University of Texas is not unfamiliar with producing champions. Marchand, who joined him in Arizona in 2020 and later followed him to Texas, captured four gold medals at the Paris 2024 Games and added a world record in Singapore a year later. The Frenchman’s progress mirrors Bowman’s reputation for precision and intensity, qualities that once tested Phelps to breaking point but ultimately sustained their partnership for two decades. That excellence probably made Summer McIntosh confident, “Bob has been absolutely incredible throughout the whole process, and I knew that at some point I was going to make the move,” she shared.

McIntosh now enters that demanding environment with ambitions aimed squarely at Los Angeles 2028, where she has spoken of targeting five individual gold medals. “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,” she continued.

For Phelps, almost 8 years away from competitive swimming, the ratio and mutual respect between the athlete and coach underlines a bond built not on trophies but on resilience. For McIntosh, that same bond represents a model for growth as she begins her own high-stakes pursuit. The lineage from Phelps to Marchand and now to McIntosh demonstrates more than individual success. It illustrates a sustained method, tested across eras, capable of elevating swimmers to their peak when the pressure is greatest.

And now, Summer McIntosh revealed why her decision to join Bob Bowman’s training group in Austin is a fresh start filled with trust, ambition, and untapped potential.

Summer McIntosh embraces a new chapter with Bob Bowman in Austin

Summer McIntosh spoke with measured clarity when she confirmed that her next stage would unfold in Austin. The Canadian swimmer described the decision to join Bob Bowman’s professional group as both natural and necessary, an evolution of her career that she had anticipated for some time. She explained that while many observers might have expected this outcome, the formal step of committing to Bowman’s program represented, in her words, “kind of like I’m growing up in a way and kind of starting a fresh page for sure.”

What guided her most, she explained, was trust.

“I know I can fully trust Bob and trust his training, and I know I’m going into an amazing training group,” she exclaimed. That assurance did not mean certainty in every respect, however. McIntosh acknowledged the unpredictable element in what her move might mean for her racing. “I would say there’s unknowns like I think but there’s a lot of knowns as well.” To her, the attraction of Bowman’s leadership lay in the balance between confidence in the structure and the possibility of new, unexplored levels of performance.

Her remarks reflected both anticipation and pragmatism. Her statement of Bowman being “absolutely incredible throughout the whole process” emphasized that she felt prepared for the environment awaiting her in Austin. What lay ahead, she believed, was an opportunity to test the limits of her abilities while working alongside athletes who shared her ambitions. “I think the sky’s the limit with him,” she added.