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Add Caeleb Dressel to the exclusive list of three-time Olympians.
Continuing his return to the pool, Dressel fell narrowly short of individual qualification in the 100-meter freestyle but earned a berth on the United States relay team in Wednesday night’s U.S. Olympic Trials for swimming inside Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis.
The former Clay High School swimmer touched the wall in 47.53, only six-hundredths out of the runner-up slot, to finish third place in the 100 free. Notre Dame’s Chris Guiliano touched the wall first in 47.38, followed by Jack Alexy of California.
Traditionally noted for his lightning-quick launch from the block, Dressel reached the turn in an uncharacteristic fourth place, and even a back half of 24.83 — surpassed only by fourth-place finisher Hunter Armstrong — wasn’t enough for the 27-year-old to overtake Guiliano and Alexy.
For most swimming events, third place isn’t enough to advance to the Olympics. However, in the 100 free and 200 free, the top four finishers qualify automatically to make up the relay team in Paris. The fifth-place and sixth-place finishers in those events could also make the flight to France, provided the United States roster does not reach the cap of 26 men and 26 women.
Narrowly missing out, though, was Bartram Trail’s Macguire McDuff, who placed eighth in 48.64 in his final.
Olympic qualification adds another chapter to the comeback for Dressel, the three-time Swimming World male swimmer of the year (2017, 2019 and 2021) who took a break from the sport midway through the 2022 World Aquatics Championships in Hungary. The third-place finish does mean, however, that he will be unable to defend his individual gold in the 100 free from Tokyo.
His mission is far from finished. The seven-time Olympic gold medalist still has a chance to qualify as an individual in the 50 freestyle, the blink-and-you-miss-it single-length splash across the pool, as well as the 100 butterfly. Dressel begins the 100 fly preliminaries Friday morning.
Another Clay swimming product, Sara Stotler, finished 16th in 2:11.72 in the women’s 200 fly.
Dressel joins former Bolles School swimmer Ryan Murphy, who won the 100 backstroke championship on Monday night, as a three-time Olympic swimmer from the First Coast.
This article originally appeared on Florida Times-Union: U.S. Olympic Trials 2024, Swimming: Caeleb Dressel, 100 free
