Kalisz, Dressel and Next Generation of U.S. Men Take Charge in Budapest

caeleb dressel, chase kalisz
Photo Courtesy: SPIA USA

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By David Rieder.

The American men needed new stars. Michael Phelps was retired and Ryan Lochte suspended. The entire roster of 24 men selected to swim at the World Championships had combined for exactly one previous individual World title: Matt Grevers in the 100 back in 2013.

Through the first four days of the meet in Budapest, the Americans men won gold in the men’s 400 free relay but earned no top honors in individual races. Then, two men in their early 20s whose talent had been long advertised came to the blocks for individual finals, and both Chase Kalisz and Caeleb Dressel came through.

First up was Kalisz, in the final of the men’s 200 IM. Kalisz was Phelps’ protégé, having known and trained with the 23-time Olympic gold medalist for years. Here, he would literally be filling the shoes of Lochte and Phelps—the two had combined to win the last seven World titles, going back to 2003, and Phelps has won Olympic gold in the event at four straight Games.

“No one’s ever going to replace those guys,” Kalisz said. “My kids are probably going to be talking about those two and everything they’ve done.”

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Kosuke Hagino — Photo Courtesy: SIPA USA

To keep alive the streak Phelps and Lochte had started, the 23-year-old Kalisz would have to deal with the man who edged him out for Olympic gold in the 400 IM last summer: Japan’s Kosuke Hagino.

Kalisz’s silver medal in that race was an exceptional effort, but it marked the first time an American had not won gold in the event at the Olympics since 1992. A full year later, it still bothered Kalisz that he couldn’t continue that stretch of dominance.

“That’s something that bothered me for a few months,” Kalisz said. “I’ll never forget the final five meters of the 400 IM (in Rio) when I knew I didn’t have enough of what it took to get it done. Everything I do every single day, that final five meters replays in my head. It haunts me.”

In the 400 IM, Kalisz has plenty of international experience, and he finished as the top-ranked American in the event each of the past five years. But before Budapest, he had never even swum the 200 IM at a major international meet, and he even scratched out of the event at Olympic Trials, knowing the dominance of Phelps and Lochte.

However, the Chase Kalisz that returned from the Olympics for one final season at the University of Georgia showed more speed and power than he ever had before. As long course season dawned, he began to show off his versatility in the 200 IM and even in the 200 fly and 200 breast.

His win at U.S. Nationals in the 200 IM showed he could contend for a medal in that event come World Championships, but gold? Over the likes of Hagino?

Well, that’s exactly what he accomplished. In the World Champs final, Kalisz turned third at the halfway point, but he accelerated through the breaststroke leg, as he typically does, out-splitting Hagino by more than a second and a half. On the way home, Kalisz held his ground, touching first in 1:55.56. Hagino came in second at 1:56.01.

chase-kalisz-usa-victory-2017-world-champs

Photo Courtesy: SIPA USA

For the first time, Kalisz was a World Champion. Minutes later, Kalisz stood on the podium with the American flag being raised in his honor—just like he had watched the flag go up so many times for Phelps victories and Lochte victories.

“I’ve never heard my own national anthem on the podium,” Kalisz said. “That’s why I do it—representing my country is the ultimate meaning of this, beyond anything else. To be able to see the flag raised to the top and hear my national anthem, I’ll never forget that.”

Finally, the American men had an individual gold medal. But Kalisz had a pretty good feeling that even if he hadn’t come through in the 200 IM, one of his teammates would take care of business in quick measure.

“We could have gone without my swim,” Kalisz said. “I was fairly confident with Caeleb that he was going to back one up and light one up.”

Boy, was he right. Earlier in the meet, Dressel had established himself as favorite for gold in the 100 free with a stunning 47.26 lead-off leg on the 400 free relay, and now, all eyes were on the 20-year-old Floridian as the men stepped to the blocks.

Dressel had won international golds on relays before, but his experience in international finals had been sparse: a sixth-place finish in the 100 free in Rio and a fourth-place finish in the 50 fly three days earlier in Budapest.

This time, though, Dressel delivered his breakthrough moment.

He went out in 22.31, two tenths faster than anyone else in the field. He closed in 24.86, also faster than anyone else in the field. For years, Dressel’s talent and raw power had shown up in the short course pool, and for the first time, he had made the world take notice.

But Dressel, with both the 100 fly and 50 free prelims coming up Friday morning, took the win in stride.

“Right now, it’s all smiles,” he said. “I just want to do my best each time I hit the water with a flag on my cap. It’s just any other race, any other good race. It’s just a kick-start.”

The moment became even more special when Dressel realized that his U.S. teammate, Nathan Adrian, had finished second, touching out France’s Mehdy Metella for the silver medal by two hundredths of a second.

caeleb-remel-dressel-nathan-adrian-usa-2017-world-champs

Photo Courtesy: SIPA USA

“Man, it felt good to go 1-2 with Nathan,” Dressel said. “There’s nothing like that—Americans on top.”

Adrian is one of only two men on the U.S. Worlds team to compete at the 2008 Olympics in Beijing, and through the lens of his own stubborn consistency, he has seen plenty of excellent sprinters rise and fall over the years.

For years, Adrian has seen the superstar potential in Dressel, and he knew that Dressel’s breakout was coming.

“Anybody who has followed Caeleb is not surprised by this, and they know the sky is absolutely the limit,” Adrian said after the 100 free semi-finals.

In Budapest, there’s surely more to come from both Dressel and Kalisz. Entering his two Friday events, Dressel sits first in the world in the 100 fly and third in the 50 free, while Kalisz ranks first in the world in the 400 IM, coming up Sunday, and he still considers the longer medley his best event.

On top of those two, the Americans still have Ryan Murphy, coming off a disappointing bronze medal in the 100 back, but still a triple Olympic gold medalist, still the world record-holder in the 100 back and still the favorite for gold in the 200 back Friday evening.

No Phelps, no Lochte, no problem. The American men could do plenty worse than building around that trio over the next three years.

“I think we’re in a good place three years out from the next Olympic Games,” Kalisz said. “We’re still in a rebuilding phase, but I think everyone in the U.S. is swimming really well.”

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Bill Bell
6 years ago

As a California guy it pains me greatly to say it but SEC swimmers — of which Dressel is a current and Kalisz a recent former — are doin’ the job bigtime. Congrats to these two plush heir coaches, Greg Troy and Jack Bauerle. Just like in football the SEC’s King of the Poolin swimming — although an ACC school (Clemson) is defending national gridiron champ. But they had to beat an SEC school ( Alabama) for the title.

But give Stanford’s Abraham Devine a couple more years and he’ll be on Kalisz’s heels come Tokyo!

Dana
Dana
6 years ago
Reply to  Bill Bell

True, but it’s not like California schools are doing badly, either. Nathan Adrian, who now has 11 or 12 World Championship medals and 8 Olympic medals, is a Cal grad. Ryan Murphy attends Cal. Katie Ledecky and Simone Manuel both attend Stanford. And so on and so forth.

Thomas A. Small
6 years ago

Congratulations guy’s go USA

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