Caeleb Dressel finishes third in 50-meter butterfly at U.S. nationals, fails to make world championships

Dressel won five gold medals in sprint events at the Tokyo Olympics

One of the best swimmers in the world, Caeleb Dressel, failed to qualify for the World Championships in the men's 50-meter butterfly at U.S. nationals on Wednesday night. Dressel finished third in the event, which he won at the 2022 World Championships, losing to Michael Andrew and Dare Rose. Dressel had also won the 100-meter butterfly at the Tokyo Olympics.

Dressel put up a time of 23.35 seconds, and Andrew (23.11) and Rose (23.20) were able to edge him out in the event. The good news for Dressel is that this was his first competition in quite some time, and he will have two more chances to qualify for the World Championships in the 100-meter butterfly and the 50-meter freestyle.

Fellow Olympic gold medalist Ryan Murphy said he is rooting for Dressel to qualify because of what he brings to the team.

"It would be awesome," Murphy said, per the Associated Press. "He's a pretty magnetic personality. He really does help everyone around him."

Dressel has typically been strong in butterly events, and that has helped him fill up his trophy case. At the Tokyo Olympics in 2021, he won gold in the 100-meter butterfly, and he swam butterfly in the 4x100-meter medley, which the U.S. won.

Dressel is also dominant in the freestyle sprint events, and he cleaned up in at the Tokyo Olympics. He won gold in the 4x100-meter freestyle relay, the 100-meter freestyle, and the 50-meter freestyle.

Throughout his career, Dressel has won seven Olympic gold medals, and he is looking to add more at the 2024 Paris Olympics.