After splashing all over the pool, Dressel popped his head above water, faced the scoreboard and pumped his fist in celebration to cap off a stunning 50-meter freestyle performance that was the biggest sign yet that Dressel, who has been atop the medal podium for years, might actually be making a comeback. He won in 21.41 seconds, his best time since the Tokyo Olympics.
“I'm happy to get a time that I haven't been able to get in a really long time,” he said, “and I'm really excited because it means we can go faster.”
Dressel's progress since Tokyo has been unsteady, and for a while it was unclear if she would ever reach the medal podium again, or even return to the pool at all. Dressel missed the 2022 World Championships due to what was later determined to be mental issues, then took eight months off competition before embarking on a difficult return in early 2023.
Just four months later, at the U.S. qualifiers for the 2023 World Championships, Dressel failed to qualify in any of the four races, including failing to make the finals in two of them.
A year later, now 27, he may not be considered a medal sure thing, but he has proven he could be a strong contender in Paris.
“He's grown a lot mentally and physically, and I'm not surprised he's at this point now compared to where he was,” Anthony Nesty, Dressel's coach at Florida and the coach of the men's swim team in Paris, said in a recent interview. “He's put in a lot of time to get himself right, so this is a credit to him.”
“Looking back, the way he was at the trials last summer and the way he is now is like night and day.”
Dressel was all smiles Friday night as he met with reporters for the first time at the trials. He loved the racing and praised the pool and the crowds at Lucas Oil Stadium. But he made it clear that none of this is easy.
“It takes a lot of hard work and there were some really low moments in this tournament,” he said.
“Some of it is me in my hotel room on camera talking to my wife, some of it is talking to my therapist. It hasn't been smooth sailing this tournament. I know people will see a smile on their faces. And I'm working on that. I'm trying to find those moments and just enjoy them.”
The 50m freestyle is an event that Dressel has always had a comfortable time in. He owns the third-fastest time of all time and three of the top six all-time, but all of those times came in 2021 or earlier. Coming into the Trials, Dressel's best time in the 50m this season was 21.84 in March, which puts him 38th in the world this year. Only three swimmers this year have beaten the 21.41 he ran Friday night.
Chris Juliano became the second swimmer to touch the wall in 21.69 seconds, meaning the 20-year-old Notre Dame athlete qualified for Paris in the 50, 100 and 200 freestyles, becoming the first American man to qualify in all three events since Matt Biondi in 1988.
Just 30 minutes after winning the 50m freestyle, Dressel returned to the pool to compete in his favorite event, the 100m butterfly semifinal. At the peak of his power, Dressel was unmatched in this event; he set a world record (49.45) at the Tokyo Olympics and has eight of the top 10 all-time. He still had plenty of speed left after that grueling 50m freestyle, winning his semifinal in 50.79, his fastest time since setting the record in 2021. It was also the top time in a semifinal here, with the final scheduled for Saturday night.
“I haven't had the best time. I haven't had one best time. But it's really special to walk out on the race track and feel the love from everybody,” he said. “I didn't expect to feel that at this event.”
A win in Saturday's final would put Dressel in a strong position to win at least four medals in Paris. Although he missed out on qualifying for the 100 freestyle, he is on the 4×100 freestyle relay team. A win in Saturday's final would also earn him a spot on the 4×100 medley relay.
“This is the real test. It's a really big test,” he said of these trials. “I feel like I performed really well.”
How Dressel performs in Paris will have a big impact on whether the U.S. can beat Australia, which won more gold medals than the U.S. at last year's world championships, and based on the times posted by veteran medalists and newcomers on Saturday, Dressel will undoubtedly get plenty of help there.
Regan Smith set a world record in the 100 backstroke on Tuesday and showed signs of breaking the world record in the 200 on Friday. She was nearly three-tenths of a second ahead of the world record going into the final corner, but ran out of gas on the last lap. Still, she finished in 2:05.16, one second ahead of runner-up Phoebe Bacon, a 21-year-old from Chevy Chase who qualified for her second Olympic Games with a time of 2:06.27.
“The rest of the world better be afraid of us,” Bacon said. “We're going to fight. We're not going to lose.”
It's a fine statement, given that Australia will once again field the powerful Kayleigh McKeown, the world record holder who won gold in both the 100m and 200m backstroke at the Tokyo Olympics.
Carson Foster won the 200 individual medley on Friday in 1:55.65, beating Shane Casas by the wall in 1:55.83, both making their Olympic debuts. At the 2021 U.S. Trials, the 22-year-old Foster placed third in the 400 individual medley, coming within half a second of qualifying for Tokyo.
But Dressel was the star of the show Friday after winning seven gold medals and becoming the face of the U.S. men's team at the 2017 world championships. He's older, but his goals are much the same.
“Early in my career, my mindset was how long can I dominate for,” he said. “That's still a bit of a part of my mindset, but I think it's slowly shifting to, 'What can I show the younger generation?'”
Dave Sheinin contributed to this report.
