Caeleb Dressel wins his seventh gold medal at the world championships.
BUDAPEST, Hungary — Michael Phelps, you have company.
Caeleb Dressel won his seventh gold medal of the world championships Sunday, putting the U.S. team ahead to stay with another dominating swim in the 4x100meter medley relay.
Twenty-four hours after becoming the first swimmer to win three golds in one night at a major international meet, Dressel joined P helps in another elite club—sevengold sat the second-biggest meet after the Olympics.
P helps was the first to do it at the 2007 worlds in Melbourne, Australia — a prelude to his unprecedented eight golds the following year at the Beijing Olympics.
Dressel matched that feat, emerging as America’ s next swimming sensation.
“We’re seeing a star being born,” teammate Matt Grevers said.
Dress el ,20, a University of Florida student, won three individual gold sand was part off our winning relay teams.
“I’ m pretty tired, but, you know, it’s been a good season, a good year, and to put together a sevenday meet, it’s a really nice feeling,” Dressel said.
It was a big night all around for the Americans.
Lilly King set her second individual world record of the meet in the 50 breaststroke, again besting Russian rival Yulia Efimova, and returned along with Sugar Land’s Simone Manuel as part of the women’s 4x100 medley relay that also broke the world record.
Chase Kalisz swept the men’s individual medleys to carry on America’ s dominance in those races, even after P helps’ retirement and Ryan Lochte missing out on Budapest because of his shenanigans at the Rio Olympics.
“I don’t think I’ll ever be on the level of those guys,” said Kalisz, who romped to victory in the 400 IM on the heels of his win in the 200.
The U.S. finished with 18 golds and 38 medals overall — a huge improvement over the previous worlds two years ago in Kazan, where the Americans managed just eight golds and 23 medals.
Dressel was named the meet’s top male swimmer. The female award when to Sweden’s Sarah Sjostrom, who capped off a stellar performance of her own with a bit of redemption in the 50 free .
After setting a world record in the semifinals, Sjostrom completed the furious dash from one end of the pool to the other in 23.69 — just two-hundredths off her mark the previous evening. Ranomi Kromowidjojo of the Netherlands claimed the silver; Manuel settled for the bronze. It was Manuel who knocked off Sjostrom in the 100 free after the Swede went out far too fast on the opening lap and had nothing left for the return.
Sjostrom set two world records in the meet, also getting credit for one in the 100 free for her opening leg of the 4x100 free relay.
Manuel was feeling a lot better when she anchored the U.S. women to a world record in the 4x100 medley relay. She joined King, Kelsi Worrell and Kathleen Baker in setting a time of 3:51.55, breaking the mark of 3:52.05 that had stood since an American victory at the 2012 London Olympics.