Caeleb Dressel and Katie Ledecky win at Olympic swimming trials

INDIANAPOLIS – Caeleb Dressel completed his second individual race in Paris, giving him another chance to shine after his stellar performance at the last Olympics.

Also keep an eye on Kate Douglass. She could be one of the biggest American poolside stars. And of course, Katie Ledecky will be swimming a slew of events.

Dressel, the winner of five gold medals at the Tokyo Games, took first place in the 100-meter butterfly at the U.S. Olympic swimming trials on Saturday evening.

Dressel followed up his victory in the 50 freestyle with a winning time of 50.19 seconds, giving him a chance to defend another of the gold medals he captured in Tokyo.

“I think I performed all my swims as well as I could,” he said.

Douglass concluded her third individual event at the Olympics with a victory in the 200-meter individual medley.

She was neck-and-neck with Alex Walsh going into the final turn, but no one could keep up with Douglass on the freestyle leg.

She finished in 2:06.79, while Walsh held on to the second Olympic spot in 2:07.86.

Douglass has lived up to her reputation as one of the most versatile swimmers in the world and has also achieved trial victories in the 200 breaststroke and the 100 freestyle.

“I’m really happy about that,” Douglass said. “I came to the meet trying to win all three events, but I didn’t think I could achieve that. So I’m glad I did that.”

Ledecky romped to her fourth victory of the trials, winning the 800 freestyle in 8 minutes, 14.12 seconds. Paige Madden took second place in 8:20.71.

Ledecky plans to drop the 200 freestyle from her Olympic program, but will compete in the 400, 800 and 1,500 freestyle, as well as the 4×200 free relay.

Dressel did not come close to his world record of 49.45, which he set at the last Olympic Games. But he led all the way, moving about half a body length ahead of 17-year-old Thomas Heilman, who earned second place for Paris in 50.80.

Dressel will also swim up to three relays at the Summer Games, which would put him close to the six-event schedule he had in Tokyo. The only event he did not win three years ago was the mixed relay.

“It’s hard to get through the trials,” Dressel said. “This is really the hardest part.”

The only individual gold that Dressel will not be allowed to defend in Paris is the 100 freestyle. He missed out on a third-place finish in his first event of these trials.

After retiring from swimming in the middle of the 2022 World Championships, leading to a lengthy layoff he needed to regain his love for the sport, Dressel will head into these Olympics with a little less hype than he did three years ago, when he is still billed as the next Michael Phelps.

Dressel is fully aware that others around the world have posted faster times at his events this year. He readily admits that he may never swim a personal record again in his career. But he’s still a man who knows how to perform when the spotlight is at its brightest, like in Paris.

“I know I’m the defending champion,” Dressel said. ‘You can’t ignore that. But I think I’m after some of those guys too.”

Perhaps the biggest thrill of these ordeals was seeing his four-month-old son, August Wilder, sitting in the stands at Lucas Oil Stadium with his wife, Meghan.

“My son got to watch me make an Olympic team,” Dressel said with a big smile. ‘He won’t remember. But I’ll tell him, believe me. I have pictures to prove it.”

Heilman will also compete in the 200 butterfly, winning that event at the trials to become the youngest man to make the U.S. swimming team since 15-year-old Michael Phelps in 2000.

“The butterfly is in good hands with this man,” Dressel said, gesturing to Heilman. “He’s scary, scary.”

Walsh will be swimming at the Olympics alongside her sister Gretchen, meaning she will ultimately be part of the team on the penultimate night of the trials.

“It means the world,” said Alex Walsh, who competed in Tokyo without her sister. “I didn’t know if I would make it to Paris after she made it. This is a dream we’ve had for so long.”

Simone Manuel, the first black swimmer to win an individual gold medal, will have one more chance to join the team in an individual event on the final night of the meet.

Manuel was already assured of her third Olympic Games as a member of the 4×100 free relay and advanced to the 50 freestyle final on Sunday with the fourth fastest time in Saturday evening’s semi-finals (24.51).

Gretchen Walsh was the top qualifier in 24.06, just ahead of Torri Huske at 24.09. Abbey Weitzeil, who like Manuel has secured a spot on her third Olympic team as a relay swimmer, was next in 24.48.