Caeleb Dressel Breaks Down The ISL Season: GMM presented by SwimOutlet.com

Gold Medal Minute presented by SwimOutlet.com

Olympic and World Champion Caeleb Dressel swam for Jason Lezak’s Cali Condors this past season on the International Swimming League. For Dressel, he knew racing against the top sprinters in the world would be great training, and that was a big reason he signed on to compete in the inaugural season. Dressel closed the season at the ISL Finale wining four individual events including the brutal skins race.  In the video above Dressel breaks down his strategy for the skins race, and he does drop the word endurance, noting two minutes is not a lot of time to recovery between sprints when you’re swimming all-out.

Looking ahead, let’s play the prediction game way too early for 2020 U.S. Olympic Trials. 

DRESSEL US OLYMPIC TRIALS EVENT SCHEDULE: I think Dressel swims his stock schedule in Omaha, 50-100 free, and 100 fly. He swims the 200 free, but only in prelims. I also think he’ll test 200 IM. If he’s on, I could see him swimming the semi and final at Olympic Trials.

DRESSEL US OLYMPIC TRIALS  100m FREE:  I’m only getting specific about one race this far out, 100m free.  100m fly was his best event at the 2019 World Championships this past summer, popping the 49.50 world record. I think 100m free will matter more to him in Omaha. He got too close to the 100m free world record this past summer, Cesar Ceilo’s supers-suited 46.91 from the 2009 World Champs in Rome. While Dressel’s best taper will certainly be at the 2020 Olympic Games, he’s going to race almost fully rested at U.S. Trials. I don’t think he’ll take any chances.

Dressel’s 2019 World Championship 100m free — 46.96

My 100m free U.S. Olympic Trials Dressel prediction — 46.84

But who cares what I think. What do you think? 

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This is a Gold Medal Media production presented by SwimOutlet.com. Host Gold Medal Mel Stewart is a 3-time Olympic medalist and the co-founder of SwimSwam.com, a Swimming News website.

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Dr Ping
4 years ago

I think Dressel v Chalmers will be the race of the Olympics.

Luigi
4 years ago

Assuming Dressel makes it through the US trials in the 100 free (which is not to be taken for granted, as incredible as it sounds) I am glad I’m neither American nor Australian and I can just sit back, relax and enjoy that incredible race in Tokyo. No disrespect to anyone, but I can’t recall another instance where two such super-talented swimmers were both young and at the top of their game in the 100 free at the Olympics, at least in my time. 1992 Barcelona, Biondi was not the same as 4 years before. Perhaps the Popov-Hall feud in Atlanta is the closest thing, but I always thought Popov had the edge over Hall in the 100. Here, it’s… Read more »

Bobthebuilderrocks
Reply to  Luigi
4 years ago

Adrian V Magnussen in 2012? Unless you mean with super close PB’s prior to the games. In which, Adrian’s 48.0 was not very close to Magnussen’s 47.1.

Luigi
Reply to  Bobthebuilderrocks
4 years ago

You can call that final close only after the fact. Going into the final, Magnussen was the super-favorite. Adrian did not have a single individual medal to his name at WCs or Olympics up to that day.

SwimWood
4 years ago

Wasn’t there talk after the world champs that Dressel really wanted to be in the USA 4×200 Team? I think his 4th event will be the 200fs.
One thing is for certain, I havent been more excited for a match-up than Chalmers vs Dressel II at Tokyo. What a race it will be!

Taa
4 years ago

He will swim the 200 free in the last meet before trials and decide based on that performance. I would vote no on him swimming it unless he can break 1:45 in Tokyo

Ragnar
Reply to  Taa
4 years ago

All we need is a Solid 1:45 relay split from him

Mr Piano
4 years ago

It may take a 47.2 to make the team in the 100, which is crazy. It would be a huge shame if Dressel didn’t make it because he wasn’t fully tapered.

As for the 200 free, I don’t think he should swim it or be on the relay. I think that it would drain him too much for the rest of the races at trials and the Olympics. Since he doesn’t really train for the 200 free, it seems that resting kind of hurts his 200 free compared to his in season. He was 1:47 in season then 1:48 high when resting last summer.

anonymous
4 years ago

I assume he has big endorsement deals and doesn’t need to swim a lot of events to fund his Pro career.

JCO
4 years ago

He can’t really take any chances with his taper at trials. IMO, he needs to be almost fully rested for the meet to make sure he makes it in the 100 free. I could see Held, Apple, and Rooney being right around 47.3, and while that’s .4 off Caeleb’s best, it’s really not that much room to play with. Let’s not forget the almost disastrous Nationals in 2018.

IM FAN
Reply to  JCO
4 years ago

I agree that he’ll be walking a tight rope, but also, motorcycle crashes…

Horninco
Reply to  Gold Medal Mel Stewart
4 years ago

Agree, approach the prelims like its finals and post a time to be considered for the relay.

You seem to think he’s going to be on full taper for trials if he’s going a 46.84. Correct?

eagleswim
Reply to  Gold Medal Mel Stewart
4 years ago

wanted to jog my memory on some other instances of something like this happening and a couple of things I didn’t remember:
– Phelps didn’t even compete in the 100 free at trials in ’04, but still got the spot in the A final. from what I can tell, this was his first time on that relay too. Not totally different than what dressel’s situation would be coming into the ’20 games for the 4×2. He did compete in the prelims in ’08, qualified second, and then bailed, having secured his spot with the prelim swim that may not have even been necessary. (side note, adrian had to swim off to get into the A final that year, where… Read more »

About Gold Medal Mel Stewart

Gold Medal Mel Stewart

MEL STEWART Jr., aka Gold Medal Mel, won three Olympic medals at the 1992 Olympic Games. Mel's best event was the 200 butterfly. He is a former World, American, and NCAA Record holder in the 200 butterfly. As a writer/producer and sports columnist, Mel has contributed to Yahoo Sports, Universal Sports, …

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