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Monday 31 July 2017
Seven’s the charm: Dressel ties Phelps’ record with 7th gold

By PAUL NEWBERRY sensation. celebrated on deck
AP National Writer “We’re seeing a star be- wrapped in her country’s
BUDAPEST, Hungary (AP) — ing born,” teammate Matt red, white and green flag.
Michael Phelps, you’ve got Grevers said. But this meet will be re-
company. The 20-year-old Univer- membered as Dressel’s
Caeleb Dressel won his sity of Florida student won coming-out party.
seventh gold medal of the three individual golds and He won the 50 and 100
world championships Sun- was part of four winning re- freestyle, and nearly took
day, putting the U.S. team lay teams. down Phelps’ world record
ahead to stay with anoth- “I’m pretty tired, but, you in the 100 butterfly. Dressel
er dominating swim in the know, it’s been a good was a beast on the relays,
4x100-meter medley relay. season, a good year, and swimming both the free
Twenty-four hours after be- to put together a seven- and fly.
coming the first swimmer day meet, it’s a really Phelps’ feat at worlds still
to win three golds in one nice feeling,” Dressel said. stands supreme since five
night at a major interna- “There’s a lot more that of his seven golds were in
tional meet, Dressel joined goes into this than just the individual events, and he
Phelps in another elite seven days that people didn’t have the benefit of
club: seven golds at the see, so I’m very happy to the mixed relays. Dressel
second-biggest meet after be done.” won a pair of golds in that
the Olympics. It was a big night all around relatively new race, which
Phelps was the first to do it for the Americans. he was quick to point out
at the 2007 worlds in Mel- Lilly King set her second after his three wins Satur-
bourne, Australia — a pre- individual world record of day .
lude to his unprecedented the meet in the 50 breast- But the comparisons to the
eight golds the following stroke, again besting Rus- winningest athlete in Olym-
year at the Beijing Olym- sian rival Yulia Efimova, pic history are sure to pick
United States’ Caeleb Remel Dressel who won 7 gold medals pics. and returned as part of up steam heading into the
shows off the award as best male athlete during the swimming Dressel matched the feat the women’s 4x100 medley 2020 Tokyo Olympics.
competitions of the World Aquatics Championships in Budapest, along the banks of the relay that also broke the Dressel swam the fly in the
Hungary, Sunday, July 30, 2017. Danube, emerging as world record. final event of the meet,
Associated Press America’s next swimming “I couldn’t imagine a bet- taking over for the third leg
ter finish to this meet,” King with the Americans facing
said. a slight deficit after world
Chase Kalisz swept the record-holder Adam Peaty
men’s individual medleys pushed Britain ahead on
to carry on America’s dom- the breaststroke.
inance in those races, even No worries.
after Phelps’ retirement Dressel surged to the front
and Ryan Lochte missing with a down-and-back
out on Budapest because time of 49.76 — the only
of his shenanigans at the butterfly swimmer to break
Rio Olympics. 50 seconds. Nathan Adrian
“I don’t think I’ll ever be on took over for the freestyle
the level of those guys,” anchor with a comfortable
said Kalisz, who romped to lead, pulling away to win in
victory in the 400 IM on the 3 minutes, 27.91 seconds.
heels of his victory in the Britain settled for the silver,
200. “But for me to be able more than a second be-
to continue our prior tradi- hind.
tion of IM, that was one When Adrian touched,
thing when I grew up that Dressel hugged his other
I knew that was our thing.” teammates, Grevers and
The U.S. finished with 18 Kevin Cordes. As everyone
golds and 38 medals over- else walked off deck, Dres-
all — a huge improvement sel lingered a bit, watching
over the previous worlds a replay of the race on the
two years ago in Kazan, video board.
where the Americans man- It must have seemed more
aged just eight golds and than a little surreal.
23 medals. “I’ve never had had it hap-
The home crowd had no pen,” Dressel said, “so I
complaints, either. don’t really know what to
Katinka Hosszu, the “Iron say.
Lady,” finished off her third To the surprise of no one,
straight 200-400 IM sweep he was named the top
at the championships, to male swimmer of the meet.
go along with a pair of The female award when
golds from Brazil last sum- to Sweden’s Sarah Sjos-
mer. trom, who capped off a
“Ria! Ria! Hungaria!” the stellar performance of her
packed house at Duna own with a bit of redemp-
Arena chanted, as Hosszu tion in the 50 free .q