All About Caeleb Dressel's Parents, Michael and Christina Dressel

Michael and Christina Dressel have four children together

Caeleb Dressel’s parents, Michael and Christina Dressel, have always encouraged and supported their son.

Caeleb is a seven-time Olympic gold medalist who holds a number of world and national records in swimming, and it was through his family that he got involved in the sport.

Michael swam at college, while all three of Caeleb’s siblings swam too. And his parents have always encouraged him, including traveling around the world to watch him swim.

In 2021, Caeleb told PEOPLE about the support he gets from his parents and other loved ones, saying, "I've been doing the sport since I was 5 years old. And if I don't have support behind me, it's just a dream and it will not be able to turn into reality. So you need that support behind you."

From how they’ve helped their children over the years to their careers and charity work, here’s everything to know about Caeleb’s parents, Michael and Christina Dressel.

Michael and Christina live and work in Florida

Michael and Christina live in Green Cove Springs, Florida, where Caeleb was born.

They got married in 1990, and Christina celebrated their 32nd anniversary in 2022 with an Instagram post, which she captioned, “32 years with this incredible man. Four beautiful kids to enjoy and a beautiful daughter-in-law. Looking forward to 32 more.”

Michael worked as a veterinarian and opened Chimney Lakes Animal Hospital after graduating from the University of Florida.

He retired in July 2022, as Christina announced on Instagram, saying, “You did it babe! Happy retirement. So very proud of you. Love you so much.”

Michael and Christina have four children

Michael and Christina have four children, two sons and two daughters: Tyler, Kaitlyn, Caeleb and Sherridon. They have dogs of their own, too, including Calpurnia, Ella and Thelma.

Through their children, Michael and Christina are grandparents as well, as Caeleb has a son, August Wilder, who was born in February 2024.

Christina posted a photo of August on Instagram the following month, writing, “No one can describe the joy of being a grandparent. August , you make my heart whole. I love this little dude so much.”

Michael was a swimmer too

Like Caeleb, Michael and his other children were all swimmers too. Michael was a four-year letterman at the University of Delaware, while Tyler set Florida state high school records that Caeleb went on to break.

Meanwhile, Kaitlyn set records at Florida State University, while Sherridon was a high school champion. According to NBC, the kids' parents encouraged them to spend time outside as children, being active, and they grew up without cable TV.

Michael had cancer

When their children were younger, Michael had cancer. Christina told Graham Bensinger in an interview, “We sat the kids down and we told them all, ‘Dad’s got ... cancer, but [it] doesn’t mean he’s going to go anywhere. We’re going to do our best, take him to the best places, and hopefully get it taken care of.”

Michael received radiation treatment twice a day for six weeks and made a recovery.

Caeleb described Christina as caring and Michael is philosophical

In an interview with Bensinger, Caeleb said that he considered his parents to be his role models while growing up, rather than any famous athletes. He said, “My mom’s the most caring person I’ve ever met. She always puts people first, you can always count on Mom … My dad’s just very philosophical, protective over his inner circle.”

In September 2022, Christina shared a photo of Caeleb on Instagram with the caption, “So much love, honor and respect for you little man. Love you so much.”

She said in an interview with SwimSwam in 2017, “I am always mom and never a coach. That is my job as a mother to be nurturing and supportive regardless of a good or bad swim.”

Michael and Christina travel to see their children compete

Over the years, Michael and Christina have traveled around to see their children swim. Christina told Clay Today, “We started our travels to watch them compete when Kaitlyn in sixth grade went to nationals, but Caeleb’s trip to Dubai for the junior worlds was our first international meet. We missed that one because we didn’t know we were allowed to go. I don’t think we’ve missed one other than that in nearly 20 years. We find a way.”

When Caeleb swims overseas, his siblings sometimes come along too. Christina said that all five of them went to Rio de Janeiro to see Caeleb at the 2014 Olympics, explaining, “That was a mess because you can’t book anything until after the Olympic Trials, and then trying to get a hotel is almost impossible. The plane tickets can be refunded most times.”

Michael got Caeleb’s siblings to confront his bully

While at school, Caeleb got bullied for a year. Caeleb told Bensinger that one of his siblings got suspended from school because they went up to the person bullying him and warned him of “further consequences”.

“I think my dad actually told them ‘No, you need to handle this for Caeleb,’ ” he explained. “That was a very cool core memory that I have from growing up.”

Christina is involved in charity work

In July 2023, Christina shared a fundraiser for the nonprofit Soles By Grace, which she helped set up, that aims to provide children around the world with safe and durable footwear following a trip to Kenya.

That October, Christina explained on Instagram, “This summer in Africa, God opened my eyes to a need for shoes for the children in schools … Since God has been pinpointed this need to me and others on that trip, we have formed an official Nonprofit called Soles by Grace.”

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