The U.S. Olympic swimming trial are completed and former Florida Gator Caeleb Dressel showed out as he prepares for Paris.
The 2024 U.S. Olympic Swim Trials have officially come to a close and former Florida Gator [autotag]Caeleb Dressel[/autotag] will represent the United States of America in three events — the 50-meter freestyle, 100-meter butterfly and 4×100-meter freestyle relay.
He first qualified for the 4x100m free relay team with a third-place time of 47.53 seconds on Wednesday. Dressel was first to the 15-meter mark and finished five one-hundredths (.05) of a second from first-place finisher Chris Guiliano.
On Friday, he proved that he’s still the fastest swimmer in America by claiming first place in the 50-meter freestyle with a time of 21.41 seconds — .20 seconds faster than his Thursday semifinal performance.
Saturday brought another victory for Dressel, this time in the men’s 100-meter butterfly. His 50.19-second finish was just .74 seconds slower than his 2021 world record.
FIRE US UP 🫡
World record holder Caeleb Dressel and 17-year-old Thomas Heilman are going to Paris!
Making it through the U.S. trials is no easy task, especially for someone who has dealt with mental health problems relating to the sport. Dressel has found a way to get from “miserable” to “happy” in swimming, though.
“I am happy with a lot of my swims, and to be back to a place that I wanted to be with the sport is exceptional,” Dressel said Saturday, according to senior reporter Henry Bushnell. “I’m really proud of myself for that.”
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The Florida Gators will be well-represented in Paris for the Olympic Games.
Florida’s diving standout [autotag]Casey Greenberg[/autotag] concluded the U.S. Olympic trials with a 495.20 combined-score performance to finish tenth among her fellow countrywomen, earning her a spot on the Paris Olympics team roster.
Greenberg opened the finals session with a 54.60, adding to her 246.30 semifinal score set Friday night. The rising junior followed that up with a 54.00 on her forward 3 1/2 somersault pike to head into the halfway mark with a 354.90 total score.
The Gainesville native’s next two dives scored below 45.00, but she ended her final attempt on a high note. She scored 55.20 on her forward 2 1/2 somersault 1 twist pike to close her trials competition with 495.20 for 10th place.
GATORS COMPETING IN PARIS
Maha Amer – Egypt
Julie Brousseau – Canada
Josh Liendo – Canada
Nicole Maier – Germany
Jonny Marshall – Great Britain
Alfonso Mestre – Venezuela
Alberto Mestre – Venezuela
Aleksas Savickas – Lithuania
[autotag]Caeleb Dressel[/autotag] – USA
[autotag]Bobby Finke[/autotag] – USA
[autotag]Kieran Smith[/autotag] – USA
Emma Weyant – USA
Luke Whitlock – USA
Olympics details
Swimming at the 2024 Olympic Games will be held at the Paris La Defense Arena, located in the city of Nanterre. Indoor swimming kicks off July 27 and runs through August 4; in total, 35 medal events will be competed.
The Olympic swimming competition concludes with the men’s and women’s open water (10km marathon swimming) races taking place Aug. 8-9. The full Team USA roster for the Olympic Games Paris 2024 will be confirmed in July.
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Notre Dame’s [autotag]Chris Guiliano[/autotag] always will remember the 2024 U.S. Olympic Swimming Trials at Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis. Largely overlooked going into the 100-meter freestyle, the reigning ACC Swimmer of the Year surprised everyone by dominating the event. It culminated with a win in the final with a time of 47.38 seconds. Here’s the final in its entirety:
This victory qualifies Guiliano for his first spot on the U.S. team for the Paris Olympics. The U.S. has won gold in this event in two of the past three Olympics. Caeleb Dressel took the gold in Tokyo, but his third-place finish in Giuliano’s triumph means he won’t get a chance to defend that medal.
Guiliano also qualified for the 4×100 relay team simply by finishing in the top four. His teammates will consist of Dressel, Jack Alexy and Hunter Armstrong.
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Caeleb Dressel and Katie Ledecki are battling for a spot on the USA Swimming Olympic Team that will compete in Paris.
Swimming trials for the 2024 Paris Olympics begin Saturday and include a pair of participants with connections to the University of Florida. Former Florida Gators standout [autotag]Caeleb Dressel[/autotag] partook in the event while [autotag]Katie Ledecki[/autotag], who has served as a volunteer assistant coach for the program, also was featured among the top contestants.
Up to 52 swimmers — 26 each on the men’s and women’s teams — will qualify for the Paris Games, and some of them are familiar stars from previous Olympics, including Ledecky, Dressel and Simone Manuel. Along with athletes attempting to make their first, second, third and sometimes fourth Games, there are a few rising stars fans will want to keep an eye on too.
Take a look below at the profiles of two members of the Orange and Blue competing for a spot in Paris, according to USA TODAY Sports.
A swimmer who needs no introduction, 27-year-old Ledecky is first in U.S. rankings in each of the events she’s entered and is the world record holder in the 800 and 1,500 — her most dominant event, which made its Olympic debut at the 2021 Tokyo Games. She should qualify in all four events, assuming she swims them all.
In addition to trying to add to her 10 Olympic medals, seven of them gold, Ledecky is aiming to become just the eighth American swimmer to compete in four Olympic Games.
After taking some time away from swimming following the Tokyo Olympics, the 27-year-old swimmer is back and hoping to make his third Olympic team. At trials, he’s entered in the same individual events he swam in Tokyo, but based on his times, he’s got some ground to make up. He’s the fastest American in the 100 fly this year so far but enters trials currently ranked third in the U.S. in the 50 free and is tied for fourth in the 100 free.
Dressel knows nothing but gold at the Olympics as a seven-time Olympic champion.
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You’ll definitely want to watch these swimmers compete for a spot on the 2024 Paris Olympics team.
The moment elite swimmers have been training for the last three years — and, for some, their whole lives — is finally here after a shortened Olympics cycle.
Swimming trials for the 2024 Paris Olympics begin Saturday, as the best American swimmers compete for a coveted spot on the Team USA roster during the nine-day event at Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis. Hundreds of swimmers will compete, but only the top-2 finishers in each event will make the team (and top-6 finishers for some relays).
Up to 52 swimmers — 26 each on the men’s and women’s teams — will qualify for the Paris Games, and some of them are familiar stars from previous Olympics, including Katie Ledecky, Caeleb Dressel and Simone Manuel. Along with athletes attempting to make their first, second, third and sometimes fourth Games, there are a few rising stars fans will want to keep an eye on too.
So ahead of the 2024 U.S. Olympic swimming trials, here are nine athletes to know, along with the trials events they’re entered in (but some could scratch).
A swimmer who needs no introduction, 27-year-old Ledecky is first in U.S. rankings in each of the events she’s entered and is the world record holder in the 800 and 1,500 — her most dominant event, which made its Olympic debut at the 2021 Tokyo Games. She should qualify in all four events, assuming she swims them all.
In addition to trying to add to her 10 Olympic medals, seven of them gold, Ledecky is aiming to become just the eighth American swimmer to compete in four Olympic Games.
After taking some time away from swimming following the Tokyo Olympics, the 27-year-old swimmer is back and hoping to make his third Olympic team. At trials, he’s entered in the same individual events he swam in Tokyo, but based on his times, he’s got some ground to make up. He’s the fastest American in the 100 fly this year so far but enters trials currently ranked third in the U.S. in the 50 free and is tied for fourth in the 100 free.
Dressel knows nothing but gold at the Olympics as a seven-time Olympic champion.
3. Kate Douglass
(Sarah Stier/Getty Images)
Entered: 50 freestyle, 100 freestyle, 100 breaststroke, 200 breaststroke, 200 IM College: Virginia
If you can’t tell from her lineup, Douglass is one of the most versatile swimmers. It’s nearly unheard of to see a swimmer excel in such drastically different events like the 50 free and 200 breaststroke, but she’s definitely one to watch at trials. The 22-year-old swimmer enters trials seeded first in the 50 free, 100 free, 200 breaststroke and 200 IM, and she’s fifth in the 100 breaststroke.
After winning bronze in the 200 IM in Tokyo, Douglass is a good bet to make the U.S. Olympic team in multiple events.
4. Jack Alexy
(Joe Warner/Correspondent / USA TODAY NETWORK)
Entered: 50 freestyle, 100 freestyle College: Cal
This 21-year-old sprinter isn’t a household name, but that could easily change with a strong outing at trials and — should he make his first Olympic team — in Paris. Especially after standout performances at the 2023 world championships, where he won five medals, including gold in the 4×100 medley relay. On his way to worlds last year, Alexy was the 100 free U.S. national champion and finished second in the 50. Definitely one of the swimmers to beat at trials, he enters the meet ranked second in the 50 free to Ryan Held and first in the 100 free.
Manuel also took a break from swimming after winning her fifth Olympic medal in Tokyo, and, based on her times, it could be challenging for her to qualify individually for Paris, especially in the two shorter sprint races. However, the 27-year-old sprinter could be a solid pick to make the team via relays if she doesn’t qualify outright for her third Olympic team.
6. Gretchen Walsh
(Sarah Stier/Getty Images)
Entered: 50 freestyle, 100 freestyle, 100 butterfly College: Virginia
Although Walsh is aiming to make her first Olympic team, she has tremendous star potential, especially after a record-breaking NCAA championship run in March when she won all seven of her events. Olympic trials are obviously on another level, but Walsh has a strong shot. She enters trials ranked third in the 50 free and fourth in the 100 free, along with being second in the 100 butterfly.
She’s looking to make the team with her sister, Alex Walsh, who won Olympic silver in the 200 IM in Tokyo. For trials, Alex is entered in the 200 IM, 100 breaststroke and 200 breaststroke.
Entered: 100 butterfly, 200 butterfly College: Cal
Although this isn’t Rose’s first Olympic trials, this is definitely his best shot at making his Olympics debut.. After winning the 100 butterfly at the 2023 U.S. national championships, Rose went on to win bronze in the event in his world championship debut that year. He was also a world champion in the 4×100 medley relay. Going into trials, the 21-year-old swimmer is seeded first in the 100 butterfly and eighth in the 200 butterfly.
Another versatile swimmer, 22-year-old Smith is looking to build on her Olympic resume after winning three medals in Tokyo, including a silver in the 200 butterfly and bronze in the 100 backstroke. She heads into Olympic trials ranked first in the U.S. this year in the 200 butterfly, 100 backstroke and 200 backstroke, and she’s third in the 100 butterfly, behind Walsh and Torri Huske. She should qualify for Paris in multiple events and could make a medley relay team too.
9. Ryan Murphy
(Rob Schumacher-USA TODAY Sports)
Entered: 100 backstroke, 200 backstroke, 100 butterfly College: Cal
Already a two-time Olympian, Murphy is looking to add to his five Olympic medals, four of which are gold. He enters trials with the fastest seed time in his two backstroke events — he’s still the American record-holder in the 100 back from 2016 — but in 2024, he has the second-fastest American time in each event. As for the 100 butterfly, Murphy is seeded sixth at trials but said competing in the event at trials will be a “game-time call.”
Five Florida swimmers earned medals at the Phillips 66 Championships on Wednesday night as the Gators continue to dominate the water.
Five Florida swimmers earned medals at the Phillips 66 Championships on Wednesday night as the Gators continue to dominate the water at this summer’s latest competition. Caeleb Dressel, Annie Lazor, Katie Ledecky, Bella Sims and Kieran Smith all took home some hardware after putting up superb performances in Indianapolis, Indiana.
Volunteer coach Ledecky earned a silver medal for her 1:55.28 in the women’s 200m freestyle — just .02 away from first — while incoming freshman Sims took home the bronze in the same event with a personal-best 1:56.08 — almost a second better than her previous top mark.
In the men’s 200m free, Smith notched a 1:45.63 time — dropping .47 seconds off his prelim time — to earn silver. The other member of the men’s team to earn a medal was Dressel, who dropped an event-best .44 seconds off his prelim time to swim a 23.35 as he continues his work his way back into Olympian form.
Finally, assistant coach Lazor added to the Gators’ haul with a 2:25.86 finish to earn the bronze in the women’s 200m breaststroke.
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For The Win spoke with Olympic star Caeleb Dressel about his quick to the pool for the International Swimming League’s third season.
Just four weeks after Caeleb Dressel climbed out of the pool for the final time at the Tokyo Olympics, he’s jumping back in the water for another competition.
After bringing home five gold medals — one of five swimmers to ever do that in a single Games — the now-seven-time Olympic gold medalist will be in Naples, Italy this weekend for the start of the International Swimming League (ISL) season.
The ISL is a flashy pro swim league with competitions that are totally different from a typical swim meet, including a WWE-esque style of flair and pizzazz. It consists of 10 teams — the inaugural season had eight teams — from around the globe with some of the world’s top swimmers making up the international rosters and competing in a regular season, playoffs and championship final. The Cali Condors were the 2020 champions, and 25-year-old Dressel is the reigning ISL MVP.
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Other top swimmers competing this season include Americans Lilly King, Natalie Hinds and Ryan Murphy; Australia’s Emma McKeon; Canada’s Kylie Masse; Japan’s Yui Ohashi; Great Britain’s Adam Peaty and Russia’s Kliment Kolesnikov.
The prize money on the line is also getting boost this season, increasing by about 10 to 12 percent, per the ISL. And that includes a $20,000 bonus for the top finisher in the final MVP race.
Competition for the third ISL season began Thursday, and for swimming fans still hungry for more can catch some of the matches on CBS or CBS Sports Network, starting Saturday at noon ET on CBSSN and Sunday at noon ET on CBS. The ISL’s website is also live-streaming the competitions.
For The Win recently spoke with Dressel before his departure for Italy about his Olympics recovery, why he likes the ISL and keeps coming back, especially right after the Games, and what he knows about the league’s latest COVID-19 protocols, as specifics remain unclear.
This interview has been condensed and edited for clarity.
After a brutal and taxing competition, Dressel is the fastest swimmer in the world right now, and he now has a total of seven Olympic gold medals from two Games.
And it turns out, his dog is pretty fast too. Jane is a black labrador who makes frequent appearances (poolside and otherwise) on Dressel’s Instagram account, but the latest video of her might be the best.
Dressel showed off Jane’s incredible swimming skills by having her swim a speedy 25 meters, which included starting on a block, which alone is amazing.
https://www.instagram.com/p/CSfWMGcJ7t5/
As far as we can tell, this looks like the Florida Gators’ 50-meter outdoor pool, and Jane absolutely crushed her 25.
And fellow swimmers were impressed, including Swedish sprinter Sarah Sjöström and Australia’s Kyle Chalmers, who won silver behind Dressel in the 100 free in Tokyo.
Well done, Jane. Here are some more photos of this awesome dog on Dressel’s Instagram:
Florida took home 17 medals in Tokyo Olympics that ranks third among all college programs behind Stanford and USC.
Now that the Tokyo Olympics came to a close on Sunday, it’s time to reflect on Florida’s strong showing in this year’s games. The Gators won 17 medals, including nine gold, in five different sports: baseball, soccer, swimming, softball and track and field. It stands as the third most among all NCAA programs behind Stanford (26) and USC (21).
If UF was recognized as a country, it would’ve finished tied for 17th place in the total medal count. Its nine gold medals would’ve landed 11th among all the countries that collected a medal in the Tokyo Olympics. Florida also had 32 athletes compete which is good enough for fifth among college programs.
The Gators’ 17 medals equal their second-highest total in the Olympics. They collected 21 in the 1984 Olympic Games held in Los Angeles and grabbed 17 in the 2012 Olympic Games in London.
Former Florida swimming star Caeleb Dressel earned over half of the Gators’ gold medals with five. He also set two world records in the 100-meter fly and the 4×100-meter medley relay. It is also the most gold medals won by a Florida student-athlete in a single Olympics.
Current Gators swimmer Bobby Finke took home two gold medals in the 1,500-meter freestyle and 800-meter freestyle.
In soccer, Deanne Rose and Adriana Leon helped Canada win its first gold medal in the sport.
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Caeleb Dressel is proud of his five gold medals at the Tokyo Olympics, but he’s absolutely drained.
When the Tokyo Olympics swimming program finished last weekend, Caeleb Dressel left the pool as a seven-time Olympic medalist, and all of them have been gold.
After being part of winning relay teams at the 2016 Rio Games, the 24-year-old sprinter won five gold medals in six events in Tokyo: individually in the 50-meter freestyle, 100-meter freestyle, 100-meter butterfly and two more on the men’s 4×100-meter medley relay and 4×100-meter freestyle relay teams. He’s one of just five swimmers to accomplish such a feat at a single Games, along with Michael Phelps, Mark Spitz, Matt Biondi, and Kristin Otto.
But when it was finally over, Dressel opened up about how challenging physically and mentally the Olympics can be on athletes.
After the men’s medley relay officially ended the swimming program, he was surrounded by his teammates on the pool deck and could barely stand. Happy, of course, but absolutely drained.
🚨 NEW WORLD RECORD SET 🚨
Ryan Murphy, Michael Andrew, Caeleb Dressel and Zach Apple continue Team USA's gold medal streak in the men's 4×100 relay with a time of 3:26.78 🏅
“This is not easy, not an easy week at all,” he said after his last race, via USA TODAY Sports. “Some parts were extremely enjoyable. I would say the majority of them were not. You can’t sleep right, you can’t nap, shaking all the time. I probably lost 10 pounds. I’m going to weigh myself and eat some food when I get back. It’s a lot of stress we put on the body. …
“It’s not the most enjoyable process but it is worth it. Every part of it is worth it. Just cause it’s bad doesn’t mean it’s not worth it.”
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Tuesday on CBS This Morning, Dressel was even more brutally honest about how painful the Olympics can be.
24-year-old Olympic swimmer Caeleb Dressel won 5 #Gold medals in Tokyo, joining the ranks of just a few elite athletes who have accomplished the feat, including Michael Phelps.
After that aforementioned quote was read back to Dressel, he expanded and said:
“It’s a week of hell, if I’m being quite honest. Being on the podium, of course, is enjoyable, but the majority of what — not just myself, not just swimmers, I think the majority of all athletes — it’s not necessarily fun, the core of the whole process. …
“You go your whole life for one moment that boils down to a race that lasts a couple seconds. If you’re a little bit off that day — I wasn’t I wasn’t perfect in any race. I wasn’t perfect mindset-wise going into any event. Every ready room is different, every year is completely different, and there’s parts of it that suck. But at no point in that quote did I say, none of it was worth it. It’s all a great learning experience. Every part of it, I do enjoy.”
Dressel also addressed the massive pressure he faced to live up to expectations and how that pressure can morph into extra stress. But he said he competes for himself and to push his own potential, rather than being the next Michael Phelps.
“Pressure’s fine. I can’t do anything about what other people expect me to do. It’s irrelevant. I don’t I don’t really care what people expect me to do at these Games. It’s all about me. It might sound a little selfish, but it’s what I want to accomplish and reaching my potential. Everything else, everybody else’s opinion, they can kick rocks. It doesn’t, shouldn’t, pertain to me. …
“Every athlete handles it different, and for every athlete, no one else’s opinion should matter. It’s up to the individual. So Simone what she did, it was her choice, and it shouldn’t pertain to anyone but her. So I think a lot of people shouldn’t open their mouth if you’re against her. It shouldn’t affect you in any way, shape or form what this one particular athlete is doing.”
