Canadian swimming star McIntosh shows improvement in her condition; underwent a spinal tap due to pre-competition headaches.

The three North American stops of the 2025 Swimming World Cup have concluded, and superstar McIntosh, who had temporarily withdrawn from all competitions due to illness, has finally shared her latest update.

According to Canadian media reports, McIntosh has recovered from an illness that "almost left her unable to swim again."

Before the first race of the Swimming World Cup, which began on October 10 local time in the U.S., McIntosh suddenly fell ill and was forced to withdraw from all events—though the cause of her illness remains undisclosed.

In an exclusive interview with Canada's CBC, McIntosh revealed that two nights before the competition, he was suddenly awakened in the middle of the night by a severe headache. Despite visiting the emergency room twice, doctors were unable to pinpoint the exact cause of his symptoms. Initially, they suspected infectious mononucleosis, but later considered the possibility of COVID-19 or influenza as well.

For the third time, there was suspicion of viral meningitis, so another lumbar puncture was performed—but thankfully, the results ruled it out.

Due to complications from the puncture procedure, McIntosh rested in bed for over a week. He has now fully recovered and is ready to get back in the water. His initial plan is to compete in the U.S. Open in December.

After the World Championships, McIntosh joined Bowman’s training group, training alongside Marchand and Regan Smith. This year, McIntosh broke three world records in just five days—and came tantalizingly close to eclipsing Liu Zige’s longstanding 200m butterfly world record, posting a time that even surpassed her performance at last year’s Olympics.

Australian star Taitums, who recently competed alongside McIntosh on multiple occasions, has announced her retirement. Taitums, 25 years old, stunned the swimming world by defeating McIntosh to claim gold in the women’s 400m freestyle at the Paris Olympics.

In 2023, Titmus underwent tumor removal surgery and, after several months of recovery, returned to the pool once again.