Not long ago, the media was oversaturated with headlines about Michael Phelp’s losses (and by “losses” I mean second place finishes) in meets such as the Grand Prix and Charlotte UltraSwim.
It was the typical thing you’ll see when the media frames a story or person in a particular way and that same storyline gets repeated by several sources. Naturally, the overwhelming majority of the stories painted a less than flattering picture of the Olympian.
Maybe in a backwards way, it was a compliment. Phelps undeniably made history so yes, it would be a big deal when he finishes a meet with anything but a gold medal.
“Compliment” or not, he’s human, as in not a machine. But what he has proven himself to be is a champ. He rose to the occasion at the US nationals in Indianapolis and set himself up nicely for the finals.
To start things off, Phelps moved fluidly through the pool and put up the fastest times in the 200 free and the 200 butterfly. His times of 1:46.31 in the free and 1:55.36 in the fly reminded athletes and spectators alike that he holds the world record in both events.
"Typical prelim swims," Phelps said, as reported in Reuters. "I'm probably happier about the 200 fly, maybe I just needed one to get going.”
By the time nationals wrapped up on Saturday, Phelps had victories in the 100m and 200m butterfly and the 200 free and in the process, punched his ticket to the world championships in Rome.
Breaking the 100 butterfly world record with a 50.22s performance was just the icing on the cake to what some consider a comeback; although, it was typical for a swimmer who has been consistently breaking world records since he was 15.
"I felt like some things were finally coming together," Phelps told the Baltimore Sun.
The USA teams are set to head for worlds which begin on July 26 and Phelps will probably be on three relays, giving him the chance to win 6 medals. At the last worlds in 2007, Phelps was able to come away with seven medals and team USA won an impressive 36.
"It's going to be real challenging to be close to our medal count in 2007," said Mark Schubert, director of USA swimming. "This is more of a building year for us."
Regardless of the medal count, with Phelps coming off breaking a world record, it’s sure to be spectacular.
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