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Drew Kibler became the first swimmer from Carmel to win an Olympic medal on Tuesday in Paris, helping the U.S. men’s team capture silver in the 4×200-meter relay.
Kibler, 24, swam the third leg for the U.S. team that also included Luke Hobson, Carson Foster and Kieran Smith. The United States posted a time of 7:00.78, behind gold medal winner Great Britain in 6:59.43. Australia took the bronze medal at 7:01.98.
Hobson, Foster and Kibler all have been swimmers for the University of Texas.
So far in Paris, the top colors for the red, white and blue at the Olympic swimming pool have been silver and bronze. Through four days at La Defense Arena, the mighty U.S. team has won a bunch of medals—15 in all—but only two of them are gold.
Seven silvers and six bronzes round out the tally.
The Americans reached the medal podium in all three events Tuesday night, but each time it was in the runner-up spot (with a bronze medal thrown into the mix, as well).
“We are always rooting for gold,” said Kibler. “That is the American standard.”
Kibler also was on the 4×200 freestyle relay team that finished fourth at the Tokyo Olympics in 2021, marking the first time a U.S. relay team didn’t earn a medal
“It is a really special thing to be on that podium. It was really tough missing that podium a few years ago,” Kibler said. “But we are always shooting for gold.”
While the Americans have nearly twice as many medals as any other nation, they trail rival Australia in the race for shiniest color.
The swimmers from Down Under have four victories and eight medals overall.
Italy has matched the Americans with two wins, and seven other nations have claimed golds in a sign of the sport’s growing depth around the globe.
The U.S. has plenty of chances to add to its medal haul over the final five days of swimming.
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