Michael || Biography

On record pace
In the first of eight events for Michael Phelps during the Games, he finally earned the title of Olympic champion after winning the 400m individual medley in a time of 4 minutes, 8.26 seconds. He broke his world record by .15 of a second and shattered Tom Dolan's Olympic record by more than three seconds. The next night, as part of the U.S. 4x100m freestyle relay team, Phelps earned his second medal of the Games: a bronze. Though he cannot set an Olympic record of eight gold medals in one Games, Phelps can tie the single-Games record for total medals of eight, set by gymnast Aleksandr Dityatin of the Soviet Union in 1980.

Sights on Spitz?
Phelps has made a strong case as the world's best all-around swimmer since appearing at the 2000 Sydney Games as a 15-year-old, the youngest male swimmer on the U.S. Olympic team in 68 years. Five months after placing fifth in the 200m butterfly in Sydney, he became the sport's youngest male world-record holder when he claimed the 200m fly mark. He has since added world records in the 200m and 400m IMs. He turned professional at age 16 and will swim eight events in Athens, prompting the inevitable comparisons to Mark Spitz, who won seven gold medals in 1972. Should Phelps match Spitz's record in Athens or Beijing in 2008, he will earn a $1 million bonus from his sponsor, Speedo. At the 2004 U.S. Trials, Phelps qualified for Athens in six individual events across every possible stroke: the 100m fly; 200m freestyle, backstroke, fly and IM; and the 400 IM. Phelps decided to drop the 200m backstroke and will swim five individual events in Athens.

History since Sydney
The 200m butterfly record started the precocious Phelps on an epic tear. At the 2001 World Championships in Fukuoka, Japan, he won his first world title in the 200m fly while lowering his world record to 1:54.58. At the 2002 Summer Nationals in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, he won four titles, breaking the world record in the 400m IM and adding American records in the 100m butterfly and 200m IM. A week later at the Pan Pacific Championships he won both individual medleys. In the medley relay, he swam the fastest opening leg in the event's history and helped the U.S. to a world record 3:33.48. In addition, Phelps anchored the 4x200m relay team that finished second but set an American record. He broke his world record in the 400m IM at the 2003 Duel in the Pool, leading the U.S. to a rout of Australia. In June 2003, he took down the nine-year-old 200m IM world record, the oldest men's mark on the books. And on the opening night of the 2004 Olympic Trials, he chopped .68 of a second off his 400m IM record with a time of 4:08.41. Two nights later he won the 200m free. On the sixth night of the Trials, Phelps finished second to Aaron Peirsol in the 200m backstroke and won the 200m IM, becoming the first American man to qualify for an Olympics in five individual swimming events. On day 7, Phelps qualified in his sixth event, the 100m butterfly, by placing second to Ian Crocker.

A true professional
Phelps turned professional almost two years before graduating from high school, when he signed a reported six-figure contract with Speedo in October 2001. "It was definitely a long thought process," Phelps says of the unusual decision to forgo his college eligibility. With his first earnings Phelps wanted a new Cadillac Escalade, but his mom wouldn't let him get it, so he settled for a used 2000 model. Part of Phelps' deal calls for money to be set aside for college tuition. He plans on attending the University of Michigan after Athens, where he will train with his coach, Bob Bowman. This fall Bowman takes over the Big Ten school's swim program.

From the start
Phelps joined the North Baltimore Aquatic Club at age seven, and four years later Bowman became his coach there. Bowman says Phelps was exceptional right away. "He's physically superior in terms of flexibility and feel for the water," Bowman said. "Also, and most important, he has an incredible ability to relax and focus under pressure -- you can't coach that."

Sibling stimulus
Phelps appeared at the 1996 Olympic Trials as a 10-year-old, not to swim but to support his sister, Whitney. When she finished sixth in the 200m butterfly final and missed making the team, the family cried in the stands. "It left a scar on our family," Michael says. Whitney's career was cut short by four herniated discs, but Michael says he lives by her example. From the time he was little, he remembers how he would hear her door shut and the car start before dawn as she made her way to practice. Phelps has another sister, Hillary, who swam for the University of Richmond.

As normal as he can be
As difficult as it may be for one of the world's best athletes, Phelps tries his best to be a normal teenager. He used to enjoy playing basketball, an activity now forbidden by his coach. In lieu of mixing it up on the court, Phelps enjoys playing video games. NHL HITZ is a particular favorite. He also listens to music on a Walkman as he walks out on the pool deck before a race. Typically rap gets him ready to go, with past favorites including Eminem, DMX's "Party Up" and MAC 10's "Connected for Life."


Bio courtesy of NBCOlympics.com