Phelps is going down ....

He's a sore loser and a graceless winner. His apelike antics in the pool were an embarrassment. Thumping his chest, sitting on the lane line and shoving his ass in Cavic's lane, refusing to look at Cavic and acknowledge him when Cavic congratulated him. Very disappointing. Some of this post was really too hard on Phelps (we can get pretty carried away with our imagery, and posting is very easy, too easy). But Thrashing Slug ("thrashing slug"??!..I still don't quite grasp this aspect of forums) makes a good point. First, I want to say that I think Phelps proved himself to be an even better and more amazing swimmer than I thought he was...and I already thought he was the best ever. Coming back on Cavic in that 100 fly...well, I thought before the race he was going to lose. He was amazing. But I think he needs to respect his competitors more than he does. Cavic did needle him prior to the race but it helped Phelps focus. At the end....the race is OVER and the guy next to him swam faster than ANYONE has ever swum the 100 fly ever except for Phelps himself. He should have congratulated Cavic on a great swim. Instead he got carried away with the thumping etc. And after the 200 free he didn't even shake Biedermann's hand and B'man was very gracious and generous in all his post race remarks (and he broke the old record on the relay too). Biedermann is good, real good. Phelps probably does need to get some perspective, not lose his amazing competitive edge, but be able to appreciate and respect his competitors more. Hey, I don't like it that when Tiger Woods hits bad shots he throws his clubs (admittedly, golf is a game designed for mental breakdowns...but if you golf for a living you should be ready for it). When I see that I wonder why he never learned the etiquette of golf, and when I see Phelps miss the sporting opportunity to congratulate his opponent after an event I think he is less for that. They even congratulate each other on MMA after a match. Cavic was a wonderful foil for Phelps; he helped him reach a greatness maybe even he didn't know he had.

He's a sore loser and a graceless winner. His apelike antics in the pool were an embarrassment. Thumping his chest, sitting on the lane line and shoving his ass in Cavic's lane, refusing to look at Cavic and acknowledge him when Cavic congratulated him. Very disappointing. Some of this post was really too hard on Phelps (we can get pretty carried away with our imagery, and posting is very easy, too easy). But Thrashing Slug ("thrashing slug"??!..I still don't quite grasp this aspect of forums) makes a good point. First, I want to say that I think Phelps proved himself to be an even better and more amazing swimmer than I thought he was...and I already thought he was the best ever. Coming back on Cavic in that 100 fly...well, I thought before the race he was going to lose. He was amazing. But I think he needs to respect his competitors more than he does. Cavic did needle him prior to the race but it helped Phelps focus. At the end....the race is OVER and the guy next to him swam faster than ANYONE has ever swum the 100 fly ever except for Phelps himself. He should have congratulated Cavic on a great swim. Instead he got carried away with the thumping etc. And after the 200 free he didn't even shake Biedermann's hand and B'man was very gracious and generous in all his post race remarks (and he broke the old record on the relay too). Biedermann is good, real good. Phelps probably does need to get some perspective, not lose his amazing competitive edge, but be able to appreciate and respect his competitors more. Hey, I don't like it that when Tiger Woods hits bad shots he throws his clubs (admittedly, golf is a game designed for mental breakdowns...but if you golf for a living you should be ready for it). When I see that I wonder why he never learned the etiquette of golf, and when I see Phelps miss the sporting opportunity to congratulate his opponent after an event I think he is less for that. They even congratulate each other on MMA after a match. Cavic was a wonderful foil for Phelps; he helped him reach a greatness maybe even he didn't know he had.