In the 50m free in the US Open Swimming Championship this year, Caeleb Dressel took 21.99 to finish the race. With that timing, Caeleb Dressel improved his performance from the prelims where the Redshirt freshman from NC State, Quintin McCarty, earned the top position with a timing of 21.94. However, that was far behind the former world champion’s best timing of 21.04 on the previous occasion. But still, it came out as the best since the former champion made a return to competitive swimming.

The slated event was already in the limelight. Caeleb Dressel’s presence was one of those. Meanwhile, in the same event in the A-final, Dressel’s high schoolmate attempted for the title. 

Caeleb Dressel’s comeback in the 50m free

Caeleb Dressel’s prelims run in the 2023 US Open Swimming Championship didn’t raise much import. Rather, the 22.35 clocking left him nowhere among the top three. For a 7 time Olympic Gold medalist, that was hard to digest. So, Caeleb Dressel made his attempt in the heat so gleefully that it stood as his best since his return to the pool. Kyle Sockwell, the CEO of Swimming Twitter, posted a glimpse of Caeleb’s fiery run in that B Final with the caption, “Caeleb Dressel. 21.99 50 Free.” 

Dressel’s timing in the B final placed him before Michael Andrew’s timing in the A final. However, before the championship, several took Michael Andrew as the possible winner of the event. And Dressel’s performance in the recent past did not present any reason for him being a favorite in the event.

The gradual improvement in Dressel’s performance

Previously, in the US Nationals, Caeleb Dressel made a hoary attempt in the 50 m free. His timing 23.35 was not enough to secure his World Championship berth in national colors. In that race, Michael Andrew shadowed Caeleb Dressel as the champion. But in that event, Dressel picked up motivation for later. Ryan Murphy poured sport for him as the former said, “He’s a pretty magnetic personality. He really does help everyone around him.”

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Anthony Nesty, the University of Florida’s swimming coach, also preferred to keep hope on the 26-year-old swimming star. After blaming the expectation, the legendary coach claimed that his student (Dressel) won’t miss a chance to prove himself. In that scenario, Caeleb Dressel’s recent performance may define him correctly. Before the 2024 Paris Olympics, it might be a positive result for him as well as for the swimming community. 

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