BUDAPEST, Hungary — Michael Phelps, you’ve got company.
Caeleb Dressel won his seventh gold medal of the world championships Sunday, putting the U.S. team ahead to stay with another dominating swim in the 4×100-meter medley relay.
A day after becoming the first swimmer to win three golds in one night at a major international meet, Dressel joined Phelps in another elite club with seven golds at the second-biggest meet after the Olympics.
Phelps had seven victories at the 2007 worlds in Melbourne, Australia — a prelude to his record eight golds the following year at the Beijing Olympics.
Dressel matched the feat along the banks of the Danube, emerging as America’s next great swimming star. The 20-year-old Florida student won three individual golds and was part of four winning relay teams.
Earlier Sunday, Lilly King took the breaststroke rubber match with Yulia Efimova — and set another world record for good measure.
The brash King knocked off her second record of the world championships, touching first in the 50-meter breaststroke in 29.40 seconds. She eclipsed the mark of 29.48 set by Lithuania’s Ruta Meilutyte at the 2013 worlds in Barcelona.
King added the 50 mark to her record-setting performance in the 100 breast. This was essentially the deciding match of her duel with Efimova, who won the 200 breast while King finished fourth.
Efimova settled for silver in the 50 at 29.57, while American Katie Meili took the bronze in 29.99.
“I always think Lilly has a world record in her,” Meili said. “Yeah, I knew she was going to go really fast. She’s been incredible this meet. Totally lights on her every time she gets in the pool, so I’m very, very proud of her.”
Despite hard feelings between King and Efimova, sparked last summer when King griped that the Russian should not be allowed to compete because of doping violations, the two hugged each other and even appeared to joke around a bit after the race.
King returned as part of the women’s 4×100 medley relay that also broke a world record.
Chase Kalisz kept the U.S. firmly on top of the world in the men’s individual medley, breezing to victory in the 400 IM to add to his triumph in the 200. He became the first swimmer at worlds to sweep the event, which encompasses all four strokes, since Ryan Lochte in 2011.
Kalisz carried on American domination of the IMs that goes back more than two decades, largely because of Phelps — a former training partner — and Lochte.
Neither is in Budapest, of course. Phelps retired again after the Rio Games, while Lochte was not allowed to compete at worlds because of his shenanigans at last summer’s Olympics.
No worries for Team USA.
Kalisz pulled away on the breaststroke leg and cruised to the finish in 4 minutes, 5.90 seconds — more than 2 seconds ahead of silver medalist David Verraszto of Hungary. Japan’s Daiya Seto grabbed the bronze.
In the women’s 50 freestyle, Sweden’s Sarah Sjostrom got a bit of redemption for her loss to American Simone Manuel in the 100 free.
After setting a world record in the semifinals, Sjostrom completed the furious dash from one end of the pool to the other in 23.69 — just two-hundredths off her mark the previous evening.
Ranomi Kromowidjojo of the Netherlands claimed the silver in 23.85, while Manuel settled for the bronze at 23.97.
Manuel knocked off Sjostrom in the 100 free after the Swede went out far too fast on the opening lap and had nothing left for the return. This time, she didn’t have to come back.
France’s Camille Lacourt took gold in the 50 backstroke with a time of 24.35. The silver went to Japan’s Junya Koga, while American veteran Matt Grevers grabbed the bronze.
In men’s high diving, Steve LoBue capitalized on a mistake from Gary Hunt in the final round to win gold for the United States.
Diving from a 27-meter platform into a temporary pool on the Danube river, Hunt was leading going into the fourth round, but the British diver over-rotated his entry as he attempted three somersaults forward with 4½ twists. He picked up only 70 points and finished fifth.
LoBue had made no mistake with his difficult five somersaults half twist in the tuck position, earning a round-best 113.40 points for a total of 397.15.
Michal Navratil of the Czech Republic was 6.25 behind for silver, while the bronze went to Alessandro De Rose of Italy. Andy Jones, another American, was fourth.
The U.S. finished with 18 golds and 38 medals overall — a huge improvement over the previous worlds two years ago in Kazan, Russia, where the Americans managed just eight golds and 23 medals.
The home crowd had no complaints either.
Katinka Hosszu, the “Iron Lady,” finished off her third straight 200-400 IM sweep at the championships to go along with a pair of golds from Brazil last summer.
“Ria! Ria! Hungaria!” the packed house at Duna Arena chanted as Hosszu celebrated on the deck wrapped in her country’s red, white and green flag.
