Michael Phelps
One of the Greatest Swimmers of All Time.
Phelps began to forge his Olympic legend at the age of 15, when he finished fifth in the 200m butterfly final at Sydney 2000. Reflecting on that achievement, the ever-demanding swimmer said: “It was great, I was fifth, that’s a pretty big accomplishment. But I didn’t want it. I wanted more. I was within half a second of medaling – it was literally, if I would have taken it out a little bit faster, maybe I would have had a chance.”
“There are reasons why I swam every holiday, every Christmas, every birthday,” added Phelps, explaining why he was the most dedicated of swimmers. “I was trying to be as prepared as I could, and I tried to see what I could really do and what my potential was. I just really did kind of whatever it took.”
Phelps had won five world titles by the time he opened his Olympic account at Athens 2004. Competing in eight events in the Greek capital, he took gold in the 100m and 200m butterfly, 200m and 400m individual medley and the 4x100m and 4x200m freestyle relays with his USA team-mates. He also won bronze in the 200m freestyle and the 4x100m freestyle relay.
His eight-medal haul matched the single Summer Games record set by Soviet gymnast Aleksandr Ditatyn, at Moscow 1980, while his tally of golds was only one fewer than the record seven won by his fellow countryman Mark Spitz, in the pool at Munich 1972.
“Everyone was comparing me to Mark Spitz. But for me – I still say this a lot – it was never about beating Mark Spitz,” Phelps later said. “It never was. It was about becoming the first Michael Phelps, not the second Mark Spitz. And that’s truly what I always dreamed of as a kid. I dreamed of doing something that no one had ever done before.”