This was posted on IWON Sports, pretty good article!!!!!!!
Michael the Great: Phelps Still Wowing Them at the Pool
Mar 27, 2:20 PM (ET) Email this Story
By PAUL NEWBERRY
MELBOURNE, Australia (AP) -Michael Phelps stood on deck with 50 Cent blaring in one ear, a steely determination in both eyes. When his name was announced to the crowd at Rod Laver Arena, the young American did nothing more than stare down the strip of water at his feet.
Next door at the warmup pool, Phelps' teammates stopped what they were doing - even those who had races of their own coming up at the world championships. They had to see this one for themselves, so they paused to watch it on a big screen.
"I had a thought in my head," Aaron Peirsol would say later, "that this was going to be one of those legendary races."
Boy, was it ever!
With four laps of the pool Thursday night, Michael Phelps wiped out Hoogie and took down the ghost of Thorpedo, leaving little doubt that we're all getting the privilege of watching the greatest swimmer ever to hit the pool.
"You just can't count him out of any race that he's in," said Mark Schubert, head coach of the U.S. team. "He's obviously on a mission. He's going to be real special here - and he's going to be real special a year from now."
Phelps already is special, of course, his legacy cemented by performances such as his six-gold, two-bronze medal haul at the 2004 Athens Olympics, or his five world records - two of them in different events on the same day - at the 2003 world championships in Barcelona.
But a magical swim Tuesday night in the 200-meter freestyle might have been the best yet, a swirling symphony of wind-milling arms, flapping feet, somersaulting turns and rocket-like bursts just beneath the water line of the temporary pool.
"I will say," Phelps allowed, "everything was pretty close to perfect in that race."
On a night when four world records fell, three of them to the powerful U.S. team, no one stood out more than the 21-year-old who loves hip-hop music, video games and a pet bulldog that he had to leave back home in Michigan.
The 200-meter freestyle record was one of swimming's hallowed marks, the time of 1 minute, 44.06 seconds set six years ago by Australia's Ian Thorpe, the iconic "Thorpedo."
No other time on the books was within a half-second of Thorpe's landmark swim at the 2001 worlds in Fukuoka, Japan. In fact, the only other swimmer to break 1:45 was Pieter van den Hoogenband of the Netherlands.
Until Phelps came along.
Shaving more than a full second off his previous best and breezing right on through the 1:44 barrier, he touched the wall in a remarkable 1:43.86, leaving Van den Hoogenband more than a full body-length behind.
The now-retired Thorpe wasn't in the pool, but, Schubert said, "it was almost like Michael was racing him without him being in the race."
Phelps and Hoogie last had gone head-to-head in the "Race of the Century" - their 200 free showdown at the last Olympics. The Flying Dutchman finished second and Phelps took the bronze in that one, both trailing Thorpe.
Ever since then, Phelps had longed for a rematch against both men. But Van den Hoogenband underwent back surgery in 2005 and needed time to recover. Thorpe set out on an extended break after Athens - never to return, as it turned out. He retired at age 24.
"I was sitting at my house, messing around on the computer and watching TV," Phelps recalled. "A friend of mine sent me a text message. He said ... 'Thorpe just retired.' I was like, 'Nah, you're kidding.' But it was true."
Phelps kept pushing on, even without Thorpe to chase in person. He knew he would at least get a chance for payback against Hoogie, who recuperated from the surgery and made it clear he intended to reclaim his place in the freestyle hierarchy.
So that's what was at stake when the two titans hit the water at the world championships.
Van den Hoogenband, who is more of a sprinter, intended to get out front through the first half of the race and try to hold off Phelps at the end. Instead, the American had the lead at the first flip and never let it go.
"I was swimming OK," Van den Hoogenband said, "but after every turn he was pushing off and kicking through the water so extremely fast. I was like, 'Let's see what he's got left for the last 50.' Well, he had a lot left."
In swimming terms, this was a runaway. Phelps touched, spun around for a look at the scoreboard, thrust his left index finger into the air and grabbed the lane rope with his right arm - all before the Dutchman completed his last stroke, nearly 2½ seconds behind at 1:46.28.
"I thought the 200 freestyle record by Ian would last for 10, maybe 20 years," marveled Van den Hoogenband, a three-time Olympic gold medalist.
Phelps had no intention of waiting that long. Even though he publicly pooh-poohed the idea of breaking Thorpe's record at these championships, deep down he knew it was possible.
Not long after Phelps jumped in the water Tuesday, he felt even more confident.
"As soon as I took my first stride in the warmup pool, I don't know what it was, but I knew something was going to happen," Phelps said. "My freestyle never felt that smooth. It occurred to me that something special was going to happen."
Phelps now seems virtually assured of winning at least seven gold medals in Melbourne, which would set him up for another shot at Mark Spitz's Holy Grail of Olympic records, those seven gold medals in 1972 at Munich.
Phelps already has taken gold in his first two events here, starting off with a brilliant opening leg in the 400 freestyle relay on Sunday. He'll be a huge favorite Wednesday night in the 200 butterfly, where he's got the seven fastest times in history. Still to come are the 200 and 400 individual medleys - Phelps holds the world record in both - and two more relays that are strong possibilities for U.S. gold.
The most serious stumbling block to going 8-for-8 is the 100 fly, in which fellow American Ian Crocker is the current record holder. Phelps once held the mark, however, and he beat Crocker for gold in Athens.
Anything seems possible with this guy.
"People kept saying Thorpe at his peak was better than Phelps at his peak," Austria's Markus Rogan said. "Now that question is answered. I think he really thrives on challenges like that."
This was posted on IWON Sports, pretty good article!!!!!!!
Michael the Great: Phelps Still Wowing Them at the Pool
Mar 27, 2:20 PM (ET) Email this Story
By PAUL NEWBERRY
MELBOURNE, Australia (AP) -Michael Phelps stood on deck with 50 Cent blaring in one ear, a steely determination in both eyes. When his name was announced to the crowd at Rod Laver Arena, the young American did nothing more than stare down the strip of water at his feet.
Next door at the warmup pool, Phelps' teammates stopped what they were doing - even those who had races of their own coming up at the world championships. They had to see this one for themselves, so they paused to watch it on a big screen.
"I had a thought in my head," Aaron Peirsol would say later, "that this was going to be one of those legendary races."
Boy, was it ever!
With four laps of the pool Thursday night, Michael Phelps wiped out Hoogie and took down the ghost of Thorpedo, leaving little doubt that we're all getting the privilege of watching the greatest swimmer ever to hit the pool.
"You just can't count him out of any race that he's in," said Mark Schubert, head coach of the U.S. team. "He's obviously on a mission. He's going to be real special here - and he's going to be real special a year from now."
Phelps already is special, of course, his legacy cemented by performances such as his six-gold, two-bronze medal haul at the 2004 Athens Olympics, or his five world records - two of them in different events on the same day - at the 2003 world championships in Barcelona.
But a magical swim Tuesday night in the 200-meter freestyle might have been the best yet, a swirling symphony of wind-milling arms, flapping feet, somersaulting turns and rocket-like bursts just beneath the water line of the temporary pool.
"I will say," Phelps allowed, "everything was pretty close to perfect in that race."
On a night when four world records fell, three of them to the powerful U.S. team, no one stood out more than the 21-year-old who loves hip-hop music, video games and a pet bulldog that he had to leave back home in Michigan.
The 200-meter freestyle record was one of swimming's hallowed marks, the time of 1 minute, 44.06 seconds set six years ago by Australia's Ian Thorpe, the iconic "Thorpedo."
No other time on the books was within a half-second of Thorpe's landmark swim at the 2001 worlds in Fukuoka, Japan. In fact, the only other swimmer to break 1:45 was Pieter van den Hoogenband of the Netherlands.
Until Phelps came along.
Shaving more than a full second off his previous best and breezing right on through the 1:44 barrier, he touched the wall in a remarkable 1:43.86, leaving Van den Hoogenband more than a full body-length behind.
The now-retired Thorpe wasn't in the pool, but, Schubert said, "it was almost like Michael was racing him without him being in the race."
Phelps and Hoogie last had gone head-to-head in the "Race of the Century" - their 200 free showdown at the last Olympics. The Flying Dutchman finished second and Phelps took the bronze in that one, both trailing Thorpe.
Ever since then, Phelps had longed for a rematch against both men. But Van den Hoogenband underwent back surgery in 2005 and needed time to recover. Thorpe set out on an extended break after Athens - never to return, as it turned out. He retired at age 24.
"I was sitting at my house, messing around on the computer and watching TV," Phelps recalled. "A friend of mine sent me a text message. He said ... 'Thorpe just retired.' I was like, 'Nah, you're kidding.' But it was true."
Phelps kept pushing on, even without Thorpe to chase in person. He knew he would at least get a chance for payback against Hoogie, who recuperated from the surgery and made it clear he intended to reclaim his place in the freestyle hierarchy.
So that's what was at stake when the two titans hit the water at the world championships.
Van den Hoogenband, who is more of a sprinter, intended to get out front through the first half of the race and try to hold off Phelps at the end. Instead, the American had the lead at the first flip and never let it go.
"I was swimming OK," Van den Hoogenband said, "but after every turn he was pushing off and kicking through the water so extremely fast. I was like, 'Let's see what he's got left for the last 50.' Well, he had a lot left."
In swimming terms, this was a runaway. Phelps touched, spun around for a look at the scoreboard, thrust his left index finger into the air and grabbed the lane rope with his right arm - all before the Dutchman completed his last stroke, nearly 2½ seconds behind at 1:46.28.
"I thought the 200 freestyle record by Ian would last for 10, maybe 20 years," marveled Van den Hoogenband, a three-time Olympic gold medalist.
Phelps had no intention of waiting that long. Even though he publicly pooh-poohed the idea of breaking Thorpe's record at these championships, deep down he knew it was possible.
Not long after Phelps jumped in the water Tuesday, he felt even more confident.
"As soon as I took my first stride in the warmup pool, I don't know what it was, but I knew something was going to happen," Phelps said. "My freestyle never felt that smooth. It occurred to me that something special was going to happen."
Phelps now seems virtually assured of winning at least seven gold medals in Melbourne, which would set him up for another shot at Mark Spitz's Holy Grail of Olympic records, those seven gold medals in 1972 at Munich.
Phelps already has taken gold in his first two events here, starting off with a brilliant opening leg in the 400 freestyle relay on Sunday. He'll be a huge favorite Wednesday night in the 200 butterfly, where he's got the seven fastest times in history. Still to come are the 200 and 400 individual medleys - Phelps holds the world record in both - and two more relays that are strong possibilities for U.S. gold.
The most serious stumbling block to going 8-for-8 is the 100 fly, in which fellow American Ian Crocker is the current record holder. Phelps once held the mark, however, and he beat Crocker for gold in Athens.
Anything seems possible with this guy.
"People kept saying Thorpe at his peak was better than Phelps at his peak," Austria's Markus Rogan said. "Now that question is answered. I think he really thrives on challenges like that."
