McIntosh Headlines Pan Pacs Day 2 Prelims as Walsh and Berkoff Spark Speed

Day 2 prelims at the 2026 Pan Pacific Championships in Irvine featured Summer McIntosh headlining the women’s 400 IM as a gold favorite, Gretchen Walsh clocking 52.57 to lead the 100 free while Americans and Aussies jockeyed for finals spots, Katharine Berkoff breaking American and U.S. Open records in the 50 back, and a series of tight heats and two-per-country rule-driven swim-offs (including a 400 IM swim-off between Asaki Nishikawa and Yumeki Kojima and a 100 free swim-off between Fan Yaqi and Chelsey Edwards) shaping tonight’s finals. The day also saw strong showings from Japan and Brazil in various events, with Masers and relays setting up a stacked night of racing across the Pan Pacs program.