Phelps michael biography

As a spectator at the event, Phelps gained another source of inspiration from observing the races of a bodysuit-clad freestyle legend, Australian Ian Thorpe. The next year, during World Championship Trials at the Phillips 66 Nationals, Phelps broke his first world record in the same event in which he had competed at the Sydney Games, the meter fly.

Still 15, he also became the youngest male swimmer to break a WR — a title previously held by none other than Ian Thorpe, who had broken the meter freestyle WR at 16 years and 10 months of age. Phelps went on to the World Championships in Fukuoka, Japan, where he broke his record again, and solidified a tight grip on the meter butterfly that would not be fully relinquished until his retirement.

In the following years, Phelps built his repertoire, proving himself on multiple occasions as not only a butterfly guru, but also a freestyle, backstroke, and I. At the Athens Olympic Games inhe earned six gold and two bronze medals. On the first day of the meet, Phelps won one of the most grueling events, the meter I. During the highly anticipated meter freestyle race, Phelps swam against his hero, Ian Thorpe.

Phelps medaled third, behind Thorpe and Pieter van den Hoogenband. He was 19 years-old. During the period between the and Olympics, Phelps amassed a number of world records, thoroughly displacing Ian Thorpe as the nucleus of the swimming universe. Inhe acknowledged his plans to beat the record of most first place finishes in a single Olympics, then held by Mark Spitz, who won seven gold medals in the Munich Games.

In preparation for the challenge, Phelps competed in eight events at the World Championships. However, Phelps won his seven other events, five of them in world record time. Phelps proved them wrong, blasting competition out of the water eight times in a row, including two relay events, during which he relied heavily on the attitude and preparedness of his teammates.

The athletes touched so close that the final result required scrutiny of the playback video, and caused a wild controversy in the swimming world. He responded much like he had four years previously to the DUI — he apologized and did his time: three months suspension from USA Swimming. At the World Championships in Rome, facing rumors that he was out of phelps michael biography and out of mind, Phelps lost his first race in four years to relative newcomer, Paul Biedermann, which prompted controversy regarding the potential unfair advantage Biedermann might have gained from his full polyurethane suit, the Arena X-Glide.

Despite controversy and public doubt, Phelps returned from Rome with a total of six international meet medals. His motivation began to waver, which showed in his performance during off-season meets. He had long since stated that he did not want to swim past the age of 30, and that the Olympics Games would be his last. With help from his mother, from a friend on the Baltimore Ravens football team, and from the ever-persistent Coach Bowman, Phelps pushed aside his reluctance, just as 7 year-old Phelps did twenty years before when he overcame the fear of submerging his face.

He used the World Championships in Shanghai to bolster his confidence and prime his skills. Two silver medals earned behind underdog Ryan Lochte, and third place in the 4 x freestyle relay caused concern. However, Phelps also gathered four gold medals, including his fifth meter butterfly championship, and steadied his focus on London.

His first event, the I. He did not medal, touching fourth, while longtime rival and friend, Ryan Lochte, rejoiced in first. Despite this, Phelps finished out the meet with another six medals, for a total of 22 Olympic medals — three more than the number held by Russian gymnast Larissa Latynina. Latynina joined him in a Louis Vuitton fashion shoot that was released shortly after the Olympics ended.

Phelps then retired, having collected a total of 71 medals in major long-course competition. At that point he held six long-course world records, including that of his signature event, the fly. During his quasi-retirement, Phelps focused on the Michael Phelps Foundation, which he founded with Bowman after his success in Beijing. He continues to support youth interest in the sport of swimming and promotes the importance of a healthy lifestyle.

Each race was a showcase of his skill, determination, and ability to perform under pressure. The image of Phelps celebrating his victories became one of the defining moments of the Games. In London, Phelps added four gold medals and two silver medals to his collection, solidifying his status as the most decorated Olympian of all time.

Although he faced stiff competition, his experience and skill allowed him to continue dominating the pool. His performances were a reminder of why he was considered the best in the world. After briefly retiring inPhelps returned to the Olympics in Rio to cap off his career in style. He won five gold medals and one silver medal, bringing his total Olympic medal count to His final race, the 4xmeter medley relay, was a fitting end to an illustrious career, as he helped secure a gold medal for Team USA.

I was probably eating anywhere between like 8 to 10 [thousand] probably at my peak where I was really growing. Just weeks following his triumph in the Summer Olympics in Athens, Phelps was arrested for driving under the influence of alcohol in Salisbury, Maryland, after cruising through a stop sign. Michael called it an "isolated incident," but admitted to letting himself and his family down.

In the fall ofPhelps was arrested again in his hometown of Baltimore, Maryland in September for driving under the influence, speeding and crossing double lines. He took to Twitter to discuss this phelps michael biography, writing "I understand the severity of my actions and take full responsibility. In JanuaryPhelps delivered an eye-opening account of his battles with depression at the fourth annual conference of the Kennedy Forum, a behavioral health advocacy group.

The athletic great described how he would fall into a state of despair after the highs of his Olympic victories, often seeking to medicate himself through drugs or alcohol. He said the "hardest fall" came after the Olympics when he found himself sitting in his room alone for three to five days, not eating and barely sleeping: "I didn't want to be in the sport anymore," he recalled.

The experience prompted him to seek help, and Phelps said he came to realize that "it's OK to not be OK," though he acknowledged there was still a stigma associated with mental illness. He estimated that as many as 90 percent of Olympic athletes go through a post-Games depression, and called on the U. Olympic Committee to do more to help. We're competing to do everything we can to try to win a medal or to try to do our country proud by wearing the stars and stripes on international ground," he told Axelrod.

Who's the next kid coming in? Where's the next person? Phelps married Nicole Johnson on June 13, After dating on and off sincePhelps popped the question in February The couple was married in a private ceremony in Paradise Valley, Arizona, although their wedding was kept secret until TMZ broke the news in October Phelps and Johnson have three sons: Boomer Robert b.

May 5,Beckett Richard b. February 12, and Maverick Nicolas b. September 9, For the 's Shark Week, Michael Phelps raced several breeds of sharks. Phelps wore a monofin to approximate the movements of a shark and get a bit of added propulsion. They did not swim the meters side by side but rather individually in the same open water, with CGI images of the sharks displayed alongside Phelps as he raced.

Their times were later compared. The hammerhead shark swam the distance at 15 miles per hour, while the great white shark swam at a whopping 26 miles per hour. Phelps only beat the reef shark by 0. Phelps began swimming at the age of seven, partly because of the influence of his sisters and partly to provide him with an outlet for his energy.

My sisters and myself fell in love with the sport, and we decided to phelps michael biography. More age group records followed, and as of August 21,Phelps still held 11 age group records, eight in long course, [ 30 ] and three in short course. Phelps has trained under Bob Bowman since he was 11 years old. I'm not going to swim for anyone else.

Phelps joined Bowman at Michigan to train and attended classes over a span of four years, but did not pursue a degree. Phelps also returned to Baltimore with Bowman. Phelps's rapid improvement culminated when he qualified for the Summer Olympics at the age of 15, as he became the youngest male since Ralph Flanagan in to make a U. Olympic swim team in 68 years.

At the World Championship Trials for the World Aquatics Championshipson March 30, Phelps broke the world record in the meter butterfly to become, at 15 years and 9 months, the youngest male ever to set a world record in swimming. Previously the youngest male had been Ian Thorpewho captured the meter freestyle world record at 16 years, 10 months.

At Nationals, the selection meet for the Pan Pacific Swimming Championshipsin Fort Lauderdale, Florida, Phelps set an American record in the meter individual medley and was just off the world record in the meter butterfly. In the meter freestyle, Phelps was barely beaten by Klete Keller and in the meter butterfly, Phelps beat Ian Crocker.

In his first event, the meter individual medley, Phelps won gold ahead of Erik Vendt with a time of In the meter butterfly, Phelps lost to Tom Malchowfinishing behind him Phelps said he lost because he did not take butterfly training seriously after he broke the world record. In the meter individual medley, Phelps won with a time of The U.

In the final for the medley relay, Phelps swam a The final time of At Nationals, Phelps won the meter freestyle, meter backstroke, and the meter butterfly. At the World Aquatics ChampionshipsPhelps won four gold medals, two silver medals, and broke five world records. Phelps swam a Phelps put up a solid time of In the meter individual medley, Phelps dominated.

On July 24, in the semi-finals of the meter individual medley, he broke his own world record with a time of Phelps dominated again, finishing in the top seed position with a world record time of At the U. Olympic Team TrialsPhelps competed in six events; the and meter individual medley, the and meter butterfly, the meter freestyle, and the meter backstroke.

Crocker won in a time of Olympic team. Gary Hall, Jr. Phelps argued his program was too crowded to compete in meter freestyle and was at least among the top four swimmers because he had beaten the top-seeded Jason Lezak the last time he had swum against him. In his first event, the meter individual medley, Phelps won his first Olympic gold medal in the world record time of I swam in a field with the two fastest freestylers of all time".

Two days later, in the meter individual medley, Phelps finished first with a time of This gave Phelps an automatic entry into the medley relay, but he deferred and Crocker swam instead. Also, he became the second male swimmer ever to win more than two individual titles at a single Games with four, tying Spitz's four from At the World Championship Trials, Phelps decided to drop his specialty events, the meter individual medley and the meter butterfly, and experiment with the meter freestyle and the meter freestyle.

At the World Aquatics ChampionshipsPhelps won a total of six medals, five golds and one silver. This was the fourth gold medal for Phelps. In the final, Phelps could not match the speed of Ian Crocker and had to settle for silver, finishing At the National Championships, Phelps won three events. At the World Aquatics ChampionshipsPhelps won seven gold medals, tying the record for a global long-course championship held by Mark Spitz since the Summer Olympicsand broke five world records.

Phelps swam the lead-off leg in Phelps set his phelps michael biography world record in the Championships in the meter freestyle, his second race. Phelps won the gold ahead of Pieter van den Hoogenband and broke Ian Thorpe 's six-year-old world record with a time of Even though Phelps competed in the backstroke in international competition only once at the Pan Pacific Championshipshe was among the best backstroke swimmers in the world.

This is illustrated by his personal best times set infour months after the World Championships. Olympic Team TrialsPhelps competed in six individual events. In his first event, the meter individual medley, Phelps broke his own world record of There is only so much I can do in a month and then I am going to prepare myself the best that I can. Phelps set an Olympic record in the preliminary heats of the meter individual medley.

The top five teams in the final finished ahead of the world record of Le Nouvel Observateur noted "Phelps taking the time to applaud and console Bernard" and wrote that this sportsmanship was "proof that the person who swims in the wake of Mark Spitz is also a great gentleman. For his third race, Phelps broke his previous world record in the meter freestyle by nearly a second and won his third gold medal.

He also set his third world record at the Olympics, The next day, Phelps participated in two finals. In his first event, the meter butterflyPhelps made it four gold medals and world records in four events by swimming the final in He also became the first swimmer to successfully defend an Olympic butterfly title. With Lochte, Ricky Berensand Peter Vanderkaayhe won his fifth gold and set his fifth world record as the American team finished first with a time of The Americans were the first team to break the seven-minute mark in the relay, and broke the previous record, set in Melbourne, Australia, by more than four and a half seconds.

After taking a day off from finals Phelps did swim in qualifying heatsPhelps won his sixth gold of the Beijing Games on August 15 by winning the meter individual medley with a world record time of It would be nice if historians talk about Michael Phelps winning seven gold medals and losing the eighth to 'some guy. Unlike all six of his previous events in the Games, Phelps did not set a new world record, leaving intact Ian Crocker 's world-record time of Phelps's finish 0.

The initial refusal by official timekeeper Omega to release underwater photos of the finish also raised questions due to Phelps's sponsorship relationship with Omega. If you ask me, it should be accepted and we should move on. I've accepted defeat, and there's nothing wrong with losing to the greatest swimmer there has ever been. It goes to show you that not only is this guy the greatest swimmer of all time and the greatest Olympian of all time, he's maybe the greatest athlete of all time.

He's the greatest racer who ever walked the planet. Phelps's seventh gold medal of the Games tied Mark Spitz 's record for gold medals won in a single Olympic Games, set in the Olympics. It was also his fifth individual gold medal in Beijing, tying the record for individual gold medals at a single Games originally set by Eric Heiden in the Winter Olympics and equaled by Vitaly Scherbo at the Summer Games.

Said Phelps upon setting his seventh-straight Olympic record of the Games in as many events, "Dream as big as you can dream, and anything is possible I am sort of in a dream world. Sometimes I have to pinch myself to make sure it is real. When Phelps dived in to swim the meter butterfly leg, the third leg of the meter medley, the United States had been trailing Australia and Japan.

Phelps completed his split in Anybody can do anything that they set their mind to.

Phelps michael biography

During the Olympics, Phelps was questioned by the press as to whether perhaps his feats were "too good to be true", a reference to unsupported rumors that Phelps might be taking performance-enhancing substances. Olympians can volunteer to be tested in excess of the World Anti-Doping Agency guidelines. At the National Championships, Phelps drastically shortened his program, swimming in only three individual events.

In his first event, the meter freestyle, Phelps won with a time of At the World Aquatics ChampionshipsPhelps won a total of 6 medals, 5 golds and 1 silver. Phelps touched second in That's an amazing training performance. I'd like to know how to do that. Phelps, along with teammates Aaron PeirsolEric Shanteauand David Waltersset a new world record in the event with a time of 3 minutes, At the National ChampionshipsPhelps competed in five individual events.

In the meter freestyle, Phelps won ahead of Ryan Lochte in a time of In the meter butterfly, Phelps won his 50th national title in On the first day of competition at the Pan Pacific Swimming ChampionshipsPhelps opted out swimming in the final of the meter freestyle to focus on the meter butterfly. In the meter butterfly, Phelps led from start to finish, coming in first with a time of Although it was much slower than his In the heats of the meter individual medley, Phelps failed to make the A final, with Lochte and Tyler Clary taking the top two American positions.

In the meter butterfly, Phelps finished first in a time of In his second event, the meter freestyle, Phelps won silver for the second consecutive time at a World Aquatics Championships. This time he finished second to Ryan Lochte in the event with a time of In his fourth event, the meter individual medley, Phelps again finished second to Lochte in a personal best of Phelps's team won the gold medal in a time of Phelps's butterfly leg of For the Summer Olympics in London, Phelps originally stated he would never do eight events again, and would instead try new events.

Phelps said, "I keep saying I want to go down and start sprinting, but Bob [Bowman, Phelps's coach] really isn't so keen on that I don't think that's going to happen Over the next four years, I'd like to try some different events, maybe not do some of the events I did here. In making his fourth Olympic team, Phelps holds the record for men for the most Olympic appearances in swimming representing the United States.

On July 28,Phelps placed eighth in the morning prelims for the meter individual medley. Phelps, the two-time defending Olympic champion, won his heat in 4 minutes, It was the first time Phelps failed to medal in an Olympic event since Phelps swam the fastest leg of the US phelps michael biography team and the second-fastest of anyone in the race.

She called Phelps deserving of the record. On August 2,Phelps won his 16th Olympic gold medal when he edged out Ryan Lochte to win the meter individual medley with a time of He repeated the phelps michael biography of winning the same event at three Olympics the following evening, winning the Olympic gold medal in the m butterflyhis last individual event.

By winning 4 gold and 2 silver medals, Phelps concluded the Olympics as the most successful swimmer of the meet for the third Olympics in a row. After the Olympics, Phelps retired from swimming, stating: "I'm done. I'm finished. I'm retired. I'm done. No more," and that "I just wanted to be done with swimming and didn't want anything to do with the sport anymore.

In AprilPhelps announced he would come out of retirement, and would enter an event later that month. He wasn't training for the medals. He wasn't even training for all the fans. This time Phelps wanted to swim for himself By the Olympic Trials, despite his age Phelps "felt physically stronger in the water, perhaps because of drills Bowman added to his pool workouts, like multiple repeats of 40 seconds of dolphin kicking while hugging a pound weight to his chest".

He won gold medals in the meter butterfly In December at the Winter Nationals in Federal WayPhelps won titles in the same three events, again in long course, bringing his career total to 62 national titles. This made him the first American male swimmer, and the second American swimmer overall after Dara Torresto qualify for a fifth Olympics. Phelps was chosen to be the American flag bearer at the opening ceremonywhich was the first Olympic opening ceremony that he would attend.

Olympic swim team as one of six team captains for the US delegation to the Olympics. Phelps swam the second leg with what his coach Bob Bowman described as "maybe the best turn that's ever been done", [ ] overtaking France's Fabien Gilot to give his American teammates a lead which they would not relinquish. In his second event on August 9, the meter butterflyhe became the first swimmer in history to make five finals in the same event, after finishing 5th in1st in andand 2nd in Phelps stated that winning back this title had been the main goal during his comeback.

The relationship between Le Clos and Phelps had been cordial in —13 but it deteriorated in when Phelps came back from retirement and suggested that the current butterfly times were slow. Phelps also became the first swimmer to win individual gold medals 12 years apart.