Caeleb Remel Dressel (born August 16, 1996) is an American competitive swimmer who specializes in freestyle, butterfly, and individual medley events. He won a record seven gold medals at the 2017 World Aquatics Championships in Budapest, nine medals, six of which were gold, at the 2018 World Short Course Swimming Championships in Hangzhou, and eight medals, including six gold, at the 2019 World Aquatics Championships in Gwangju. Dressel is a nine-time Olympic gold medalist and holds world records in the 100 meter butterfly (long course), and 100 meter individual medley (short course).
At the 2020 Summer Olympics in Tokyo, Dressel won five gold medals, which made him the fifth American to win five gold medals in a single Olympic Games after 1970. Mark Spitz, Michael Phelps (3 times), Eric Heiden, and Matt Biondi were the other four. He also became the first male swimmer to win gold medals in the 50 meter freestyle, the 100 meter freestyle, and the 100 meter butterfly at the same Olympics. At the 2024 Summer Olympics in Paris, Dressel won gold medals in the 4×100 freestyle relay and 4x100 mixed medley relay, putting him in a joint tie for 2nd-most Olympic golds after Michael Phelps.
Dressel holds American records in the 50 meter freestyle, 50 meter and 100 meter butterfly (long course), and the 50 meter freestyle and 100 meter butterfly (short course). He also holds American records in the 50 yard and 100 yard freestyle events, and the 100 yard butterfly, and formerly held national records in the 100 yard breaststroke and the 200 yard individual medley. Over the course of his collegiate career, he won NCAA titles in the 50 yard freestyle, 100 yard freestyle, and 100 yard butterfly individual events. He is widely regarded as one of the greatest sprinters in swimming history.
Early life Dressel was born on August 16, 1996, in Green Cove Springs, Florida, the son of Christina and Michael Dressel. His father is a veterinarian specializing in urgent care for cats and dogs. Dressel is the third of four children; his three siblings, one brother and two sisters, plus his father were all competitive swimmers setting records and earning honors across the high school and university levels. He and his siblings learned to swim at a young age, for him when he was 4 years old, and by the time Dressel was 8 years old he had committed to competitive year-round swimming.
Dressel attended Clay High School in Green Cove Springs, Florida, and trained with the Bolles School Sharks in Jacksonville where he met his then training partner and now wife, Meghan Haila. He was a collegiate swimmer at the University of Florida starting in 2014 and majored in Resources and Conservation.
Sport career 2012 He led off a 50-yard free relay with a time of 19.82, becoming the first swimmer under 16 years old to break 20 seconds.
2012 US Olympic Trials At the 2012 United States Olympic Trials, Dressel was the youngest male swimmer at 15 years of age and ranked 100th in the 200 meter individual medley in a time of 2:08.08, 121st in the 100 meter butterfly at 57.21 seconds, 121st with a time of 1:55.17 in the 200 meter freestyle, tied for 145th in the 50 meter freestyle with a time of 23.87 seconds, and tied for 152nd in the 100 meter freestyle with his time of 52.21 seconds."2012 U.S. Olympic Team Trials: Results". USA Swimming. July 2, 2012. Retrieved September 23, 2021. After not making the 2012 US Olympic Team, Dressel refocused and set his sights on the 2016 Summer Olympics.Axon, Rachel (May 10, 2016). "After time off, swimmer Caeleb Dressel is contender at trials". USA Today. Retrieved September 22, 2021.
2013 2013 World Junior Championships
When Dressel was 17 years old, he won six medals, including a gold medal in the 100 meter freestyle in which he broke the Championships record with his time of 48.97 seconds, at the 2013 FINA World Junior Swimming Championships in Dubai, United Arab Emirates in August 2013.FINA (31 August 2013). "4th FINA World Junior Swimming Championships: Results". USA Swimming. Retrieved September 23, 2021."Ultimate Athlete Profile: Caeleb Dressel". USA Today High School Sports. October 28, 2013. Retrieved September 23, 2021. His time also broke the National Age Group record set by Michael Phelps in the 100 meter freestyle in 2004 for the 17–18 year old age group by eight hundredths of a second.Frazier, Francine (September 25, 2013). "Swimming Spotlight: Clay's Caeleb Dressel deals with world-class expectations". The Florida Times-Union. Retrieved September 23, 2021. His other medals were in the 4x100 meter freestyle relay and the mixed 4x100 meter freestyle relay, where he won a silver medal in each event, and in the 50 meter freestyle, 4x200 meter freestyle relay, and the mixed 4x100 meter medley relay in which he won a bronze medal in each."Road to Rio: Caeleb Dressel". WBIR-TV. April 26, 2016. Retrieved September 23, 2021. In addition to the events Dressel medaled in, he competed in the 200 meter freestyle where he finished sixth with a time of 1:49.29 and swam in the final of the 4x100 meter medley relay which did not place as it was disqualified. In total, his medal breakdown was one gold medal, two silver medals, and three bronze medals.
2013 US Junior National Championships At the 2013 Speedo Winter Junior National Championships (the USA Swimming sanctioned national championship meet for 18 and under swimmers), Dressel became the youngest swimmer in history to break the 19 second barrier in the 50 yard freestyle, swimming an 18.94 to lead off his club team's relay.
2015 2015 NCAA Championships During his freshman year at the University of Florida, Dressel won the 2015 NCAA title in the 50 yard freestyle when he was 18 years old with a time of 18.67 seconds, which was his first NCAA title, the first NCAA title for the Florida Gators in the men's 50 yard freestyle, and set a new 17—18 national age group record in the event.Keith, Braden (March 27, 2015). "Watch Caeleb Dressel Break 17-18 NAG Record, Win NCAA Title, In 50 Free". SwimSwam. Retrieved November 20, 2021. With his performance, Dressel also became the fastest freshman in the 50 yard freestyle in the history of the NCAA and the second-fastest American in the event, only behind Nathan Adrian.Johnson, Annika (February 24, 2021). "Adam Chaney Becomes 2nd Fastest Freshman Ever In 50 Free Behind Caeleb Dressel". SwimSwam. Retrieved February 16, 2022.Carroll, Tony (March 26, 2015). "Caeleb Dressel Lowers NAG Record; Ties Seventh Fastest Swim In History". SwimSwam. Retrieved February 16, 2022.
2015 National Championships At the senior 2015 National Championships (long course) in San Antonio, Texas, he won two individual titles, in the 50 meter and the 100 meter freestyle. His winning time of 21.53 in the 50 meter freestyle ranked 4th in the world for 2015.
2016 2016 NCAA Championships At the 2016 Men's NCAA Division I Championships, he broke the American and US Open records in the 50-yard freestyle with a time of 18.20 and the 100-yard freestyle with 40.46.
2016 US Olympic Trials At the 2016 US Olympic Trials, Dressel made the 2016 US Olympic Team in the 100 meter freestyle by finishing second with a time of 48.23 seconds, he also placed 4th in the 50 meter freestyle, 7th in the 100 meter butterfly, 32nd in the 200 meter freestyle, and was disqualified in the 200 meter individual medley for a false start."2016 Olympic Trials Results". USA Swimming. July 3, 2016. Retrieved September 21, 2021. In addition to the five events he raced, Dressel had entered to compete in the 100 meter breaststroke with his best time of 1:02.26 and the 100 meter backstroke, and decided not to race the events.Sutherland, James (July 22, 2016). "Caeleb Dressel Entered In Seven Events For US Olympic Trials". SwimSwam. Retrieved September 22, 2021. Dressel's performances leading up to and at the 2016 US Olympic Trials earned him recognition as America's best young sprinter by Sports Illustrated and CBS News.Gardner, David (June 22, 2016). "How a hiatus helped Olympic hopeful Caeleb Dressel smash U.S. records". Sports Illustrated. Retrieved September 22, 2021."Meet the star rookies of the 2016 USA Olympic Swim Team". CBS News. August 5, 2016. Retrieved September 22, 2021. Overall, Dressel and coach Gregg Troy chose a forwards mentality to Dressel's training, with Troy expressing Dressel's best could still be four, eight, or more years down the road.
2016 Summer Olympics
At the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, Dressel won his first Olympic medal, a gold medal, in the 4×100 meter freestyle relay."Rio 2016: Swimming World Records Smashed as Phelps, Peaty and Ledecky Win Gold". Newsweek. August 8, 2016. Retrieved September 22, 2021."All of Team USA's Rio Olympic Gold Medals in One GIF". Time. August 11, 2016. Retrieved September 22, 2021.Parenteau, Chris (August 13, 2016). "Swimmers with ties to Jacksonville find success in Rio". News4Jax. Retrieved September 24, 2021. In the final, he swam the first leg in 48.10 seconds, which was the second-fastest lead-off relay leg in the finals heat, and was followed by relay teammates Michael Phelps, Ryan Held, and Nathan Adrian in that order. The American team recorded a time of 3:09.92. Of the 13 medals won by Florida Gators at the 2020 Summer Olympics, Dressel became the first athlete to win a medal from the university's sports teams with this gold medal. Dressel and his finals relay teammates earned USA Swimming's Golden Goggle Award for best relay performance of the year in 2016 for their efforts.Griffus, Annette (November 21, 2016). "Adrian, 4x100 free win Relay Performance of the Year at Golden Goggles". Kitsap Sun. Retrieved September 24, 2021.Keith, Braden (November 21, 2016). "2016 USA Swimming Golden Goggles Awards: Live Recap". SwimSwam. Retrieved September 24, 2021. Dressel and his teammates shared tears in the medal ceremony and while doing a victory lap around the pool after they received their medals, their tearful reactions were highlighted by local news outlet The Florida Times-Union.Harris, Beth (August 8, 2016). "U.S. relay team tearful after victory in 4x100". The Florida Times-Union. Retrieved September 24, 2021. The relay was also highlighted by SwimSwam as one of their five unforgettable moments of the 2016 Summer Olympics."5 Most Unforgettable Moments By U.S. Olympic Swimmers". SwimSwam. August 16, 2016. Retrieved September 24, 2021.
In the 100 meter freestyle, Dressel finished sixth in the final in a time of 48.02 seconds with fellow United States swimmer Nathan Adrian taking the bronze medal and Kyle Chalmers of Australia winning the gold medal.Barney, Justin (August 10, 2016). "Caeleb Dressel sixth in 100-meter freestyle". The Florida Times-Union. Retrieved September 24, 2021.
Dressel also swam freestyle in the heats of the 4×100 meter medley relay, and won his second gold medal of the 2016 Olympic Games when the finals relay of Ryan Murphy (backstroke), Cody Miller (breaststroke), Michael Phelps (butterfly), and Nathan Adrian (freestyle) placed first in Olympic record time.Mendes, Rodrigo (August 19, 2016). "Rio 2016 Swimming 6 - 13: Results Book". Omega Timing; Atos. Version 1.1. Retrieved September 24, 2021.Eggert, Gregory (September 21, 2017). "Caeleb Dressel (USA) "I don't want to be compared to Michael"". FINA. Retrieved September 24, 2021. He swam a time of 47.74 seconds for the freestyle leg of the prelims relay consisting of him, David Plummer (backstroke), Kevin Cordes (breaststroke), and Tom Shields (butterfly).
2017 2017 NCAA Championships