History of Caeleb Dressel in Timeline
"Caeleb Remel Dressel is a highly decorated American swimmer known for his prowess in freestyle, butterfly, and individual medley. Representing the Cali Condors, he holds numerous accolades, including seven gold medals at the 2017 World Aquatics Championships, a record-breaking feat. Dressel continued his winning streak with multiple gold medals in subsequent championships, solidifying his dominance in the sport. As a seven-time Olympic gold medalist, he holds world records in the 100-meter butterfly, 50-meter freestyle, and 100-meter individual medley, cementing his legacy as one of the greatest swimmers of all time."
1970: Five Gold Medals in a Single Olympics
Before Caeleb Dressel, four other American swimmers (Mark Spitz, Michael Phelps, Eric Heiden, and Matt Biondi) had won five gold medals in a single Olympic Games since 1970.
August 16, 1996: Birth
Caeleb Dressel was born on August 16, 1996.
2004: Michael Phelps' National Age Group Record
Caeleb Dressel broke Michael Phelps' National Age Group record in the 100-meter freestyle for the 17-18 age group, which was set in 2004.
2007: Michael Phelps' Seven Gold Medals
Michael Phelps was the first swimmer to win seven gold medals at a single World Championships, doing so in 2007.
2012: 2012 United States Olympic Trials
At the age of 15, Caeleb Dressel competed in the 2012 United States Olympic Trials but did not qualify for the US Olympic Team.
August 2013: 2013 FINA World Junior Swimming Championships
At the 2013 FINA World Junior Swimming Championships in Dubai, 17-year-old Caeleb Dressel won six medals, including gold in the 100-meter freestyle, where he broke the Championships record and the National Age Group record set by Michael Phelps in 2004.
2013: Speedo Winter Junior National Championships
Caeleb Dressel became the youngest swimmer to break the 19-second barrier in the 50-yard freestyle at the 2013 Speedo Winter Junior National Championships.
2013: Relationship with Meghan Begins
In 2013, Caeleb Dressel began dating Meghan, a former breaststroke swimmer who competed for Florida State University. They later got married and had a son together.
2013: Vladimir Morozov's Record
In 2013, Vladimir Morozov swam the fastest split time ever for 50 yards of freestyle on a relay with a time of 17.86 seconds.
2014: University of Florida
Caeleb Dressel began his collegiate swimming career at the University of Florida in 2014.
2014
Florent Manaudou set the world record for the 50-meter freestyle at 20.26 seconds. Caeleb Dressel would later break this record in 2019 at the International Swimming League with a time of 20.24 seconds.
2015: 2015 National Championships
Caeleb Dressel secured two individual titles at the 2015 National Championships in San Antonio, Texas, winning the 50-meter and 100-meter freestyle events.
2015: NCAA Title
Caeleb Dressel, at 18 years old, won his first NCAA title in the 50-yard freestyle with a time of 18.67 seconds, becoming the fastest freshman in the event's history.
2016: Focus on 2016 Olympics
After the 2012 Olympic Trials, Caeleb Dressel shifted his focus to the 2016 Summer Olympics.
2016: 2016 Men's NCAA Division I Championships
At the 2016 Men's NCAA Division I Championships, Caeleb Dressel broke the American and US Open records in the 50-yard freestyle and the 100-yard freestyle.
2016: Second Olympic Gold Medal
Caeleb Dressel earned his second gold medal at the 2016 Olympics as part of the 4x100-meter medley relay team, swimming the freestyle leg in the preliminary heats.
2016: 2016 US Olympic Trials
Caeleb Dressel qualified for the 2016 US Olympic Team in the 100-meter freestyle, finishing second with a time of 48.23 seconds at the trials. His performance earned him recognition as a top young sprinter.
2016: First Olympic Gold Medal
Caeleb Dressel won his first Olympic gold medal in the 4x100-meter freestyle relay at the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.
2016
Cody Miller, 2016 Olympic bronze medalist in breaststroke, posted a perspective piece to his YouTube channel about Caeleb Dressel's record breaking 100-yard breaststroke.
2016: Favorite Bible Verse
In 2016, Caeleb Dressel shared with Sports Illustrated that his favorite Bible verse is Isaiah 40:31.
2017: World Aquatics Championships
Caeleb Dressel was named male swimmer of the meet at the 2017 World Aquatics Championships.
2017: World Aquatics Championships
Caeleb Dressel won a record seven gold medals at the 2017 World Aquatics Championships in Budapest.
2017: FINA World Championships
Caeleb Dressel won seven gold medals at the 2017 FINA World Championships, setting a record for the most gold medals won at a single FINA World Championships by an individual. This record was later broken by Olivia Smoliga in December 2018.
2017: Seven Gold Medals at World Championships
Caeleb Dressel matched Michael Phelps' achievement of winning seven gold medals at a single World Championships, achieving this feat at the 2017 World Aquatics Championships in Budapest, Hungary.
2017: World Aquatics Championships
Caeleb Dressel did not win the 50-meter butterfly at the 2017 World Aquatics Championships.
2017: World Aquatics Championships
At the 2017 World Aquatics Championships, Caeleb Dressel achieved the feat of winning three gold medals in one day, a first in the history of the event. He repeated this achievement in 2019.
2017: Southeastern Conference Championships
At the 2017 Southeastern Conference Championships, Caeleb Dressel became the second person to split under 18 seconds for 50 yards of freestyle on a relay, achieving a split of 17.90 seconds in the 4x50-yard medley relay.
March 22, 2018: NCAA Division I Men's Swimming and Diving Championships
On March 22, 2018, during the NCAA Division I Men's Swimming and Diving Championships, Dressel broke the NCAA, American, and US Open records in the 50-yard freestyle three times, with times of 18.11, 17.81, and 17.63. This marked the first time a swimmer broke the 18-second barrier in the 50-yard freestyle.
July 2018: US National Championships
In July 2018 at the US National Championships in Irvine, California, Caeleb Dressel won the 100-meter butterfly with a time of 50.50 seconds, securing a spot on the Pan Pacific Championships team. He also finished second in the 50-meter butterfly and sixth in the 100-meter freestyle.
July 19, 2018: Professional Debut
Dressel's professional swimming career commenced on July 19, 2018, when he officially partnered with the swimwear company Speedo.
August 2018: Pan Pacific Championships
At the August 2018 Pan Pacific Championships in Tokyo, Japan, Caeleb Dressel won the 100-meter butterfly with a new Championship record time of 50.75 seconds. He also secured a silver medal in the 50-meter freestyle and gold in the 4x100-meter medley relay. Additionally, he contributed to the bronze medal win in the mixed 4x100-meter medley relay. Unfortunately, his 4x100-meter freestyle relay team was disqualified due to an incorrect swimming order.
December 2018: World Short Course Championships
At the December 2018 World Short Course Championships in Hangzhou, China, Dressel tied Kelsi Dahlia for the most medals won at a World Championships, with nine medals total and six gold medals. He was part of the mixed 4x50-meter medley relay team that set a new world record.
2018: Southeastern Conference Swimming and Diving Championships
At the February 2018 Southeastern Conference Swimming and Diving Championships, Caeleb Dressel broke the American, US Open, and NCAA records for the 100-yard breaststroke with a time of 50.03, surpassing Kevin Cordes' 2014 record by 0.01 seconds. He also set a new American record in the 200-yard individual medley with a time of 1:38.13, beating David Nolan's 2015 record by 0.25 seconds.
2018: NCAA Division I Men's Swimming and Diving Championships
At the March 2018 NCAA Division I Men's Swimming and Diving Championships, Caeleb Dressel won all three of his individual races and his first national relay title.
2018: World Swimming Championships
Caeleb Dressel won nine medals, including six gold medals, at the 2018 World Swimming Championships in Hangzhou.
May 17, 2019: Atlanta Classic
On May 17, 2019, at the Atlanta Classic in Atlanta, Caeleb Dressel outswam Chase Kalisz in the 100-meter breaststroke with a time of 1:01.22, qualifying him for the 2020 US Olympic Trials in the event.
2019: International Swimming League
In 2019, Caeleb Dressel participated in the inaugural International Swimming League representing the Cali Condors, who placed third in the final match held in Las Vegas, Nevada, in December. He was named the Most Valuable Player in all three matches he participated in, winning the skins race each time. He also won the 100-meter freestyle, 100-meter butterfly, and 50-meter butterfly.
2019: World Aquatics Championships
Caeleb Dressel won eight medals, including six gold medals, at the 2019 World Aquatics Championships in Gwangju.
2019: Engagement
Caeleb Dressel and Meghan got engaged in 2019 after six years of dating.
2019: World Aquatics Championships
At the 2019 World Aquatics Championships in Gwangju, South Korea, Caeleb Dressel won gold in the men's 4x100-meter freestyle relay. He then became the first American man to win gold in the 50-meter butterfly, setting a new national and championship record time of 22.35 seconds. He also achieved a national record and the third-fastest time in history (46.96) in the 100-meter freestyle.
July 2020: Swimming Analysis Videos
Caeleb Dressel started sharing his insights on swimming through video analyses posted on his YouTube channel in July 2020. His first video featured a breakdown of his world record-breaking performance in the 100-meter butterfly.
August 2020
In August 2020, Caeleb Dressel posted a video to his YouTube channel analyzing his record-breaking 100-yard breaststroke from 2018.
September 2020: Collaboration with SPIRE
In September 2020, SPIRE Institute and Academy announced their collaboration with Dressel. This involved Dressel contributing to several aspects of student support at SPIRE, including curriculum development, training programs, and facility design.
2020: 2020 Summer Olympics
At the 2020 Summer Olympics in Tokyo, Caeleb Dressel won five gold medals, becoming the first male swimmer in modern Olympic history to win gold in the 50-meter freestyle, the 100-meter freestyle, and the 100-meter butterfly at the same Olympics.
2020: First Florida Gators Medalist
Caeleb Dressel's gold medal in the 4x100-meter freestyle relay at the 2016 Olympics marked the first Olympic medal for a Florida Gators athlete out of the 13 medals won by the University's sports teams at the 2020 Summer Olympics.
2020: Wedding Planning and Hiking
During the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020, Caeleb Dressel kept busy by planning his wedding and hiking a 60-mile portion of the Appalachian Trail.
February 13, 2021: Wedding Day
Caeleb Dressel married his fiance, Meghan, on Valentine's Day weekend, February 13, 2021, in their home state of Florida.
June 14, 2021: USA Swimming Olympic Trials
On June 14, 2021, during the 2020 USA Swimming Olympic Trials, which was postponed to June 2021 due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Caeleb Dressel participated in the preliminary heats for the 200-meter freestyle. He achieved a time of 1:46.63, ranking him second overall for the heats and moving him up to the 20th fastest American of all time in the event. Despite his performance, he chose not to compete in the semifinals.
June 16, 2021: US Olympic Swimming Trials
On June 16, 2021, Dressel competed in the 100 meter freestyle prelims, ranking 5th and advancing to the semifinals. Later that day, he secured the top spot in the semifinals with a time of 47.77, advancing to the final.
June 17, 2021: US Olympic Swimming Trials
On June 17, 2021, Dressel emerged victorious in the 100m freestyle final, clocking a time of 47.39. This victory not only secured his spot on the US Olympic Swimming team for the 2020 Summer Olympics but also tied him for the US Open and Championships record in the event.
August 2021: 2020 Summer Olympics
Caeleb Dressel and Ryan Murphy were chosen as captains for the US men's swimming team at the 2020 Summer Olympics, which were held in August 2021 in Tokyo, Japan.
February 17, 2024: Birth of August Dressel
Caeleb Dressel and his wife Meghan welcomed their first child, a son named August, on February 17, 2024.