TOKYO — They are both Florida Gators and both won individual gold here Friday, but Caeleb Dressel and Bobby Finke swam different races and came, frankly, from very different places, even if they do train in the same zip code. America expected Dressel to win. Even Finke did not expect Finke to win.
Americans keep winning swimming medals here, and the pile can distort how hard it is just to win one. Dressel had never won individual gold until Thursday. It’s easy to take his greatness for granted, but neither he nor his team can afford to do it.