“I think it’s an important part of the sport” – When Caeleb Dressel opened up about trash talk and how it affects his game

US swimmer Caeleb Dressel became a swimming superstar with his massive fifth gold medal haul at the Tokyo Olympics last year. While the reigning Olympic champion may receive a lot of questions about how he trains or what his workout routine looks, he admitted to something particularly amusing just a couple of days before jetting off to Tokyo for the Olympics.

There is no doubt that motivation plays a key role in practice sessions for an athlete. But what constitutes motivating is always a matter of trial and error for any athlete. While most people enjoy cheering, Caeleb Dressel and fellow Olympic swimmer Ryan Lochte prefer trash-talking.

Yes, these two world-class swimmers find encouragement in trash-talking each other during practice.

They admitted to this amusing fact in July last year in a pool-side interview with Graham Bensinger for 'In Depth with Graham Bensinger'. When the interviewer Bensinger asked Caeleb Dressel to give him an example of trash talking, Dressel joked about it, saying:

"I am not going to say it on camera. I want to keep my job."

The response made Ryan Lochte laugh with a "Yeah".

Dressel continued to try to show trash talk in training to Bensinger by saying:

"I don't know just boys being boys. That's about it."

Ryan Lochte explained how the two of them went about it further. He said:

"It's usually like come on old man. You can do it. I mean just like little jabs with the old thing and then sometimes some big jabs."

Caeleb Dressel concurred with Lochte and added that it was fun and played an important role in training. In sports, trash talking or sledging is common. It's popular, especially in team sports like cricket and football, but there have been incidents where trash talk has crossed the line and has landed an athlete in trouble for numerous reasons, from swearing to racism.

The contentious nature of the topic has frequently elicited conflicting views on the morality of trash-talking in games, with some viewing it as an art form and an integral part of the game, while others have outright opposed it due to the serious incidents it has caused.

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"When I am at a meet, I will just let my swimming do the talking" - Caeleb Dressel

Caeleb Dressel and Ryan Held (Credits: Grant Halverson / Getty Images)

Caeleb Dressel insists that while he engages in amusing trash talk with his teammates during practice, he never does it at any meet with any of his competitors, preferring to prove himself through his performance. Speaking to Bensinger, he said:

"I don't really do it to my competitors. Of course not. I mean when I am at a meet, I would have to say, l will let my swimming do the talking."

Caeleb Dressel further elaborated that even though everyone in the swimming community respects each other, the atmosphere at practice is slightly different. For him, trash talking keeps things light and helps him forget about his problems. He also believed that some people, such as himself, respond favorably to trash talking. He noted:

"I mean I think that everyone within the sport of swimming has a certain respect for one another but in practice it's different. I think it keeps it light-hearted and some people, some better angry. I mean if you were to pipe up the tom, he responds really well to it and I respond well to it... "

"...It's fun, keeps it light-hearted. It can take your mind off things when you are looking for the next thing to say, when you are coming in to the other wall already,"

Dressel stated that being able to race someone is a big part of why he enjoys swimming, and trash talking stems from the competitiveness. It also motivates him to put in more effort. He avered:

"So, what I have learned from him too is that I love swimming because we can race. We can race all the time and yes, you do get a little like **** talking in practice but that makes it fun and that makes you want to even train harder."

Dressel however added that at the end of the day, your swimming is what ultimately matters, and how you perform in the pool is more important than what you say. He concluded:

"Yeah, I mean the biggest thing is just racing, stepping up and race and I mean you can run your mouth all day but really to shut someone up, you just beat them."

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Well, whatever helped Caeleb Dressel train harder seems to have worked because his performance at the Tokyo Olympics was nothing short of splendid.