How many medals does Caeleb Dressel have? Florida swimmer's Olympic gold medal count

There will never be another Michael Phelps when it comes to U.S. Olympic swimming lore .

But Caeleb Dressel is as close as it comes.

The former Florida swimmer added another Olympic gold meda l to his collection on Saturday as he swam anchor on the U.S. men's 4x100-meter freestyle relay at the 2024 Paris Olympics. Dressel picked up his eighth Olympic gold medal with the gold finish, placing him among the best U.S. Olympic athletes ever.

2024 PARIS OLYMPICS: Follow USA TODAY's complete coverage here

Dressel swam in his first Olympic event at 19 in 2016, and still shows signs of dominance at 27 as he competes in the Paris Games. In his time at Gainesville, Dressel won 10 national championships, proving to be one of the greatest athletes ever to come out of Florida. He set the record for the 100-meter butterfly at 49.45 seconds, breaking the previous world record set by Phelps by .37 seconds at the 2020 Olympics.

Dressel is returning to the 2024 Olympics in Paris after stepping back from swimming at the World Championships in 2022. He cited health reasons and later clarified that he needed to step back from swimming for his mental health.

Here's what you need to know about Dressel's Olympic history, how many gold medals he has won and more:

Caeleb Dressel Olympics history

• Olympics competed in: Rio 2016 | Tokyo 2020 | Paris 2024

After not making the 2012 Olympics at 15 years old, Dressel has been dominant at the Olympics for Team USA since, making three straight Olympic appearances. He was the youngest male swimmer at the 2012 Olympic Trials and, in 2016, he earned gold on the relay teams for the 4x100-meter freestyle and the 4x100-meter medley.

Dressel followed up his debut with five more Olympic golds in 2021, during the 2020 Tokyo Olympics. He earned gold in the 50-meter freestyle, 100-meter freestyle and 100-meter butterfly individually. He also participated in the American relays on the 4x100-meter freestyle and the 4x100-meter medley again.

How many medals does Caeleb Dressel have?

• Gold medal count: Eight
• Silver medal count: 0
• Bronze medal count: 0
• Total Olympic medals: Eight

If Dressel wins, he wins gold. He has eight gold medals in his career following his swimming anchor on the 4x100 freestyle relay on Saturday. Dressel is tied for fourth in American history for most gold medals. Michael Phelps (23 medals) leads all Americans all-time, while Mark Spitz (nine) and Carl Lewis (nine) are tied for second.

Jenny Thompson, Matt Biondi, Ray Ewry and fellow former women's Gator swimmer Katie Ledecky all have eight gold medals as well (as of Saturday, July 27).

Caeleb Dressel medals

Dressel won his first gold medal at 19 during the 2016 Rio Olympics. In 2021, during the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, Dressel was dominant, winning five medals, three individual races, and a pair of relays.

Rio 2016

• 4x100m freestyle (gold)
• 4x100m medley (gold)

2020 Tokyo

• 50-meter freestyle
• 100-meter freestyle
• 100-meter butterfly
• 4x100m freestyle (gold)
• 4x100m medley (gold)

2024 Paris

• 4x100m freestyle (gold)

Caeleb Dressel events in 2024 Paris Olympics

• Men's 50m freestyle: Thursday, Aug. 1 to Friday, Aug. 2
• Men's 100m butterfly: Friday, Aug. 2 to Saturday, Aug. 3

Following his racing in the men's 4x100 freestyle relay, Dressel is scheduled to race in two individual attempts: The 50-meter freestyle and the 100-meter butterfly. The 50-meter free race will be on Thursday, Aug. 1, and Friday, Aug. 2, while he'll likely participate in the fly races on Aug. 2-3.

This article originally appeared on The Gainesville Sun: How many medals does Caeleb Dressel have? Florida swimmer's Olympic gold medal count