Paris 2024 Olympics: star Caeleb Dressel not qualified for the 100m freestyle during the American selections

Caeleb Dressel, a phenomenon at the Tokyo Games with 5 gold medals, will not repeat this performance in Paris. MAXPPP – Laurent Lairys

The seven-time Olympic champion had to settle for 3rd place in the final, in Indianapolis, and will only be able to swim in the 100m relay. He can still qualify for the 50m freestyle and the 100m butterfly, for which he holds the titles.

The American Olympic selections once again proved their ruthlessness this Wednesday, June 19, by depriving Caeleb Dressel of 100 m freestyle at the Paris Games this summer, by six hundredths of a second on Wednesday in Indianapolis.

The seven-time Olympic champion took 3rd place in the event in 47 seconds 53, behind Chris Guiliano (47''38) and Jack Alexy (47' #39;'47), who grab the two individual tickets. Dressel, however, did not lose everything since he secured a place in the 4x100m freestyle relay, and proved that he was indeed back among the best swimmers in the world, after three chaotic years.

Return after a break of several months

"It's incredibly fast, this top-6 under 48 seconds, it's super fast, fantastic", he said about the final, smiling at the microphone of the broadcaster NBC. After his triumph in Tokyo (5 titles), Dressel had experienced breaks of several months outside the pools, had withdrawn from the World Championships in Budapest in 2022 before failing to qualify for those of Fukuoka in 2023.

Also read: Tokyo 2020: the Dressel phenomenon, six world records, a Blue medal… the results of the Olympic pool

The 27-year-old American can still hope to qualify individually for Paris in the 50m freestyle and 100m butterfly, two events in which he is also the reigning Olympic champion.

Ledecky untouchable over 1500 m

The women's 100m freestyle saw the victory of Kate Douglass, 14-time world medalist, and bronze in the 200m medley in Tokyo in 2021, in 52 seconds 56 ahead of Torri Huske (52.93) .

After the 400 m and the 200 m, which she will not swim in Paris, the legend with seven Olympic titles Katie Ledecky, including the first over 800 m in London in 2012 at 15 years old , she easily won the 1500m freestyle, in which she is the Olympic title holder, in 15 minutes 37 seconds 35. Thomas Heilman won the 200m butterfly (1'54&#39 ;'50) and Matt Fallon the 200m breaststroke with a United States record (2'06''54).