Caeleb Dressel is one of the fastest swimmers in the world. In 2016, Dressel was awarded the FINA Short Course Swimmer of the Year award. He just 21 years old.
When I saw him for the first time, my jaw dropped to the floor. Does anyone know what his tips are for beating the competition? It’s not his power (Dressel can swim really fast on his average power) or his endurance (he can swim really long distances).
His secret, he says, is “a relentless mindset and an obsessive personality.” In other words, he is always thinking about swimming and is excited about improving his swimming and being challenged. This makes him stick to his training more than his competitors. But his speed is still a mystery. Some sources say it’s his “flexion-extension” technique, which is pulling on the water, and then pushing off again with the hips.
Whatever his secret is, it’s important to note that technique is always something that your coach should work on with you. Technique is something that can easily be fine-tuned to make you faster than the competition or even make you a better swimmer in general. However, it can not be something you try to figure out on your own.
His consistency and his ability to swim his best when it matters most.
At the Youth Olympics, Pausch earned silver medals in the 200-meter and 400-meter individual medleys. He also swam on the winning U.S. teams in the mixed 400-meter and mixed 4×200-meter relays.
At the World Juniors later that same year, Pausch maintained his dominance. He swam the first leg of the winning U.S. team in the 4×100-meter mixed medley relay and again picked up silvers in the 200-meter and 400-meter individual medleys. Also at the World Juniors, Pausch earned gold in the 4×200-meter mixed freestyle. He also took second in the 200-meter individual medley.
The year 2017 is going to be another monumental year for Pausch. First, he’ll take on the World Championships, where he’ll be looking to repeat his double gold-winning performances in the 200-meter and 400-meter individual medleys. Afterward, he’ll join his teammates for the FINA World Championships, where USA will face off with the rest of the world.