Caeleb Dressel got emotional after failing to add a second gold medal to his collection in Paris.
The superstar American swimmer broke down in tears when he finished fifth in the 100m butterfly semifinals.
As a result, he missed out on Saturday’s final, less than four years after winning gold in the event at the Tokyo 2020 Games.
It was a difficult day for the 27-year-old, who finished in a disappointing sixth place during the men’s 50-meter freestyle final.
He was quick to fall behind the winner, Australia’s Cameron McEvoy, who finished with a time of 21.25 seconds.
Caeleb Dressel broke down in tears when he finished fifth in the 100m butterfly semifinals
He missed out on the final after winning gold in the event at the Tokyo 2020 Games
Viewers criticized NBC for broadcasting Dressel’s obvious devastation after the poor result.
‘How about y’all have some respect for the athletes like Caeleb Dressel and don’t take advantage of his disappointment. Don’t leave the camera on him for multiple minutes,’ one person fumed on X.
Another viewer chimed in, ‘If they could get the camera off of Caeleb Dressel while he falls apart here, that’d be great. That was devastating to watch.’
A third commended the coach who ushered him into a private area away from the cameras.
‘Cheers for the coach who helped get Caeleb Dressel to some privacy. Disappointment is hard. I hope he knows how much the US is still SO proud of him,’ the fan wrote.
The USA men’s 4x100m freestyle relay team produced the nation’s first gold medal in Paris
Dressel collected his eighth career Olympic gold medal when he anchored the team
Dressel helped Team USA defend its title when they won gold in the men’s 4x100m freestyle relay earlier this week.
The quartet of Dressel, Hunter Armstrong, Chris Guiliano and Jack Alexy powered away from their Australian rivals to win gold in 3:09.28 in the last final of a raucous opening night at the La Defense Arena.
The Australians were forced to settle for silver in 3:10.35, while Italy took the bronze in 3:10.70.
Dressel collected his eighth career Olympic gold medal, when he anchored them to a second successive 4x100m freestyle title.
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