Taking a peak at the swimming domain, there’s always a question of whether Caeleb Dressel is on Michael Phelps‘ shoulder level or not. Being the greatest Olympian in history has cemented Phelps’ name in record books and hearts alike. But his arch-rival Dressel is not dragging his feet either. This was especially relevant when he secured the win at the 2024 Pro Swim Series Westmont, despite a malfunction.

The 50m freestyle ‘A’ final was the race the world record holder was rooting for. But right when he took the stance before diving, his block broke underneath his feet. To start the race with such a hitch could have dimmed his spirit. But the 7x Olympic gold medalist won it and laid out the probable reason behind it.

Caeleb Dressel credits the malfunction for his win instead

A post-race interview of SwimSwam (as uploaded on Instagram) was keen to know what went wrong with Caeleb Dressel’s block. Smiling ear to ear, the 27-year-old said, “Yeah, the block, that was, it was kind of funny. I mean, I don’t think I would have been like anything crazy faster as the block. And the blocks at that end, they all move a little bit, but that was pretty substantial enough to where I was like, I mean, I came up pretty early”. But the story he narrated after showed how seasoned a swimmer he is.

Having attended Clay High School, the Cali Condors swimmer practiced with a bunch of starlets. There he met with Coach Jason, who once made one of his teammates swim at 4 in the morning without his goggles. That malfunction made him more mindful and clock in faster than anybody. Keeping that as an inspiration, Dressel said, “Maybe it (block malfunction) actually helped me in the race”. 

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Ignorant of these little obstructions trying to hold him back, the new dad secured back-to-back podiums at the Swim Series this year. Especially the 50 freestyle ‘A’ final, which was his best in two years.

Dressel causing aquatic upheaval

The 100m butterfly (short and long course) and 50m freestyle (short course) world record holder achieved great heights in the February event. Winning the 100m butterfly in Westmont was a smooth affair, but the 50m freestyle could be plagued. But he clocked in at 21.84 from lane 8 to edge his rivals out.

In that 50m dramatic race, another technical malfunction left the swimmers concerned. The scoreboard went blank after the race ended, thus leaving the athlete-coach duos puzzled. Later, the hosts announced the names through the arena speakers. Caeleb Dressel, the fifth American to have won five golds in a single Olympics will look to add more under his belt in Paris.

“Don’t Ever Forget”: New Dad Swimmer Caeleb Dressel Caught off Guard by Sports Analyst