Katie McLaughlin Adds Olympic Medal; Paralympic Games; The Con of Michelle Smith; Zach Apple Still Proves Himself; Dressel Makes Post-Olympic Racing Return

The Con of Michelle Smith: How the Irish Lass Cheated the Swimming World

Her presence on the international stage was inconsequential. She didn’t affect the makeup of podiums. She didn’t influence any championship finals. At least, that’s the way the career of Michelle Smith unfolded for most of the years she represented Ireland in global competition.

Despite Turbulent Tokyo Olympics, Zach Apple Still Proves Himself as Dependable Relay Star

In the span of 48 hours, Zach Apple experienced the full spectrum of emotions a swimmer can go through, from the most impressive and dramatic triumph that brings about Olympic gold to the most gutting disappointment conceivable. The 24-year-old from Trenton, Ohio, had spent years establishing himself as a regular on U.S. international teams, but his first Olympics saw him take on more high-profile roles than ever before. Beginning with his first splash in an Olympic final, the stakes were raised.

Caeleb Dressel Makes Post-Olympic Racing Return, Posts Impressive Quadruple at ISL in Naples

At the Tokyo Olympics, Caeleb Dressel won five gold medals, becoming just the third man after Mark Spitz and Michael Phelps to win individual gold in three different races. When he finished that meet, Dressel suggested he needed a break, and he spent the better part of August traveling the U.S. for media and sponsorship commitments and vacation. But as the 2021 ISL season kicked off this week in Naples, Italy, Dressel was there and in the pool, maybe not racing at absolute top form but putting up strong times and, of course, winning.