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Michael Phelps epilogue (OT)

Posted By: Chuck Bower
Date: Sunday, 5 August 2012, at 2:12 p.m.

A week ago I started a thread:

http://www.bgonline.org/forums/webbbs_config.pl?noframes;read=127051

wondering how the already anointed "greatest Olympic athlete ever" (more on that below) would follow up after a disappointing 4th place finish in the 400m Individual Medley (IM). We now know the answer. To recap the situation at that point in time:

2000 Olympics (age 15): one final -- no medal.

2004 Olympics (age 19): eight finals -- 6x gold, 2x bronze.

2008 Olympics (age 23): eight finals -- 8x gold.

2012 Olympics (age 27): after first final -- no medal (4th place).

Meanwhile the person who was supposed to dethrone him as greatest swimmer of today, Ryan Lochte, was the person who took gold in the event where Phelps had just finished 4th. I wondered how Phelps would respond. One week later:

2012 Olympics (age 27): seven finals -- 4x gold, 2x silver, 1x no medal (4th place).

That's the response we expect from a champion. Divided between individual events and relays (relay has four team participants), Phelps had 2 golds and a silver in each category. Although I think the rivalry between Phelps and Lochte was overblown by the media, and possibly even created by them, for completeness I note that Lochte finished the meet with four more medals in his five remaining events -- a gold and a silver in relays (both on the same relay teams with Phelps), a bronze and a silver in individual events, the silver coming in the 200 IM where he was beaten by... Michael Phelps. His lone non-medal was a 4th place in an individual event. (Taken from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ryan_Lochte).

Regarding the "greatest Olympic athlete ever", IMO there shouldn't be such a category/title. If you look historically, swimmers enter more events than most athletes, followed by gymnasts and next by some track-and-field and/or cycling competitors (by my unscientific survey). Many disciplines only allow a single entry. No question Phelps has the most total medals and the most total golds, so "most decorated Olympic athlete ever" fits his situation.

Apparently Michael Phelps's competitive book has closed. He went out in style.

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