Caeleb Dressel opened the floodgates Friday night in Paris, tears flowing as he stood on deck at his final individual event of these Olympics — an evening that ended without anywhere near close to what Team USA had expected.
Dressel started to cry, breaking down on national TV for several minutes at the finality and disappointment of it all.
The emotional moment followed his sixth-place finish in the 50-meter freestyle and missing out on a final in the 100 butterfly.
“Yeah, obviously it’s not my best work”
Dressel said.
This hasn’t been my best week; I probably don’t need to hide that but the racing’s really fun around here.
Dressel bounced on his toes just seconds before he slid into the water for freestyle, then walked onto deck when introduced with more swagger than speed. He threw his hands up and did a two-step to get into Lane 2.
He swam off the blocks to Olympic records in both the 50 free and 100 fly — including a world record doing so for his third gold at Tokyo, but again just missed out an event on what he asked Santa Claus was probably something of every swimmer’s Christmas list. He placed sixth Thursday with a time of…… Yeah, his fly semi wound up being a wacky 13th in the world.
Dressel leaned over the lane rope following the free, wanting out of the water anytime soon. He says he’s not going to let these two deflating races ruin his time in France.
“It’s being able to see the moment for what it is instead of just reinforcing times”
Dressel said;
“I’m at the Olympic Games. I won’t forget that. I wish I were doing so well. I’m not. I do get to train hard enough to go quicker than the ultimate best times I race, you see. It’s tough. Oh man, a little heartbreaking…like a lot of heartbreak”
Wife Meghan and their five-month-old son, August — wearing oversized protective headphones in the deafening noise of La Defense Arena have urged on 27-year-old Dressel.
At least the baby saw Dad take home gold once. On the opening night of swimming at those games, Dressel quieted his critics once again when he joined forces with three other American swimmers to win a thrilling 4×100-meter freestyle relay over two key rivals around pool deck — Australia and China.
This was his eighth career gold. He also took the 100 free and was a member of two victorious 4×100 medley relays in Tokyo, having previously won golds with both teams at the Rio de Janeiro Games in 2016.
“This final stretch here in Paris, Dressel is going to savor it. Dressel may not have been here at all, Afterall; he took an extended break from the sport in 2017 to address his mental health and rekindle his passion for swimming”
He is just 27, turning 28 on Aug16 and to be done with all the trials and tribulations waiting for him in life now there is so much work ahead of itself as part of self-improvement.