Caeleb Dressel Shows Positives Signs with 47.98 in 100 Free at Nationals
What to expect from Caeleb Dressel this summer is a question looming over American men’s swimming two years out from the next Olympics.
The longtime sprint cornerstone is a nine-time Olympic gold medalist, 15-time World Champion and about to turn 30, with valid questions about his commitment to racing at the highest levels. U.S. Nationals in Irvine, Calif., is his big meet of the summer, and he’s started it off well.
Dressel returned to the 47s with a swim a 47.98 seconds in preliminaries of the men’s 100 freestyle on Tuesday morning to open the meet.
It’s his best time since U.S. Olympic Trials in 2024, when Dressel went 47.53 in finals to finish third and book an Olympic spot in Paris for his third Games. (Dressel didn’t get a flat-start 100 in Paris, anchoring the prelims relay in 48.19 and the finals squad in 47.53 en route to gold.)
Since the Paris games, Dressel has taken time out of the water and switched coaching voices in an effort to seek balance between his swimming life and his role as a husband and father. He went from five gold medals at the Tokyo Olympics in 2021 to sixth place in the 50 free and a semifinals crash out in 13th place in the 100 butterfly in Paris.
Dressel’s swim on Tuesday makes him one of 23 men to break 48 seconds in the world this year, with finals to come Tuesday night plus the finals of the men’s 100 free at the Commonwealth Games later in the day. The European Championships and Pan Pacific Championships, at which Dressel will not swim, remain on the calendar to bolster the world rankings.
Dressel is seventh among Americans this year: Chris Guiliano (47.38), Brooks Curry (47.51), Jack Alexy (47.70), Matt King (47.77), Patrick Sammon (47.83) and Maximus Williamson (47.93), the latter two setting their times in the same prelims heat Tuesday. Sammon, Alexy, Guiliano and Destin Lasco are slated for the 100 free and relay duty at Pan Pacs for the U.S. in Irvine next month.
Dressel’s jump into the 47s is significant. His best time this year was 48.65 at the TYR Pro Swim Series stop in Indianapolis. Before Olympic Trials in Indy, his last 100 free in the 47s was at the 2022 World Championships in Budapest.
The 100 free figures to be on the periphery of what Dressel is aiming for at the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics. He will certainly be an asset to relay depth, even more so as the Olympic quota crunch tightens with added events. A top-four finish might be the more realistic target for him there.
With the addition of the 50 fly, he’s got another short stroke to aim at, and the 100 free may well be lower in the individual priority than the 50 free, 50 fly and 100 fly, as is the usual retrenchment for fast men as they age. Dressel being among the 47s now should inspire hope he can be closer to the 47.5 that the U.S. will want to fill out its relay two summers hence.
