At the TYR Pro Swim Series, Caeleb Dressel won the 50-meter freestyle event in 21.84 despite facing a few technical malfunctions. At the beginning of the race, his starting block broke below his feet. This incident was followed by the scoreboard going blank as the automatic timing system failed leading the scores to be announced through venue speakers
After the win, Dressel shared his opinion on the 50-meter event. “I don’t think I would have been like anything crazy faster because of the block. And the blocks at the end they all move a little bit, but that was pretty substantial enough for where I was, I mean, I came up pretty early.
I had a coach Jason from high school; he actually made one of my teammates swim at 4:00 a.m. without his goggles on, so he would only think about that. I think he ended up having the best time, so who knows, maybe it actually helped me in the race,” Dressel said.
Fastest Swim Since Two Seasons
Interestingly, this 50-meter freestyle swim by Dressel was his fastest in two years. At the 2022 U.S. international team trial, he touched the wall in 21.29. Furthermore, since his comeback, the 27-year-old has managed to reach 21 sub once at the 2023 U.S. Open, finishing the 50-meter event in 21.99.
At the 2024 TYR Pro series, he also swam his best 100-meter butterfly of the season. On the second night, Dressel finished the race in 51.27 and surpassed Dare Rose (51.77) and Zach Harting (52.04).
After failing to secure a spot for the 2023 World Aquatics Championships, Dressel certainly continues to showcase improvement in the 50-meter free and 100-meter butterfly events. He has also qualified for the 2024 U.S. Olympic Trials to be held from June 15-23.
Caeleb Dressel Competing For The Paris Olympics In June
According to a list released by Swim Swam, 743 swimmers (408 men and 355 women) have qualified for the U.S. Olympic Trials to take place in Lucas Oil Stadium, Indianapolis. As of now, Caeleb Dressel has qualified to compete in the 50-meter freestyle, 100-meter butterfly and 100-meter freestyle events. At the Tokyo Olympics, Dressel managed to win five gold medals for Team U.S.A.
However, shortly after giving some of the best performances of his career, he took an eight-month hiatus from the sport in 2022. According to the seven-time Olympic medalist, with all swimming fans tying their hopes with him after Michael Phelps’ retirement, it became harder for him to swim.
The 27-year-old battled with depression and panic attacks due to the stress faced while representing team U.S.A. at international events.” I needed the time I took; it was longer than I would’ve thought pre-Olympics I needed every little bit,” he revealed in an interview with Graham Bensinger.
Nonetheless, despite encountering the ups and downs that come with the sport, Dressel continues to demonstrate his expertise this season. The fans are now excited for him to face Michael Andrew at the U.S. Trials to punch his ticket for the 2024 Olympics.
