Phelps Did It
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Phelps Did It
by red states rule Sun Aug 17, 2008 8:38 am
This was history folks and it was great to watch
Phil Sheridan: A golden opportunity to watch history unfold, one lap at a time
BEIJING - The best thing about watching Michael Phelps all week was that you knew from the first jump off the block until the last touch of a wall that you were seeing history.
Every time he raced, he won. Every time he won, he set a world record. You couldn't watch without mentally fast-forwarding 20 years to a day you could tell your grandkids that you saw Olympic history being made.
Eight golds.
Who wouldn't want to travel back in time to watch Mark Spitz in Munich? To be able sit in the arena for Nadia's perfect 10s? Wouldn't it be cool to go back and watch Paavo Nurmi with your own eyes? Knowing what you know, could those eyes hold back the tears if you were in Berlin watching Jesse Owens?
All week, the atmosphere in the Water Cube has been as surreal as the building itself. Phelps was taking the drama out by winning so easily. He was so perfect, it was becoming almost ho-hum.
Then came last night's 100-meter butterfly.
Trailing Serbia's Milorad Cavic in the final meters, Phelps needed every ounce of his strength and every centimeter of his wingspan to lunge forward and win the race by 1/100th of a second. The slacker failed to set his seventh world record, though. He managed a measly Olympic record.
Serbian officials asked race officials to review the videotape of the race. That tape can be slowed to 1/10,000th of a second and it showed that Phelps touched first.
"I think everybody on the planet has been trying to give him some kind of obstacle," said Ian Crocker, who finished fourth in the event, but held onto his world record. "We're trying to. He's kind of crossed the bridge and taken swimming to the next level."
The charm of this story is in the details. On Friday, Phelps blew away the field in the 200 individual medley, shattering another world record. He stood on the top step of the podium, which by now must have a permanent impression of his long bony feet, accepted his sixth gold medal of the week, and listened to the national anthem.
If Francis Scott Key were alive for ASCAP royalties, he'd owe Phelps a thank-you note.
http://www.philly.com/inquirer/sports/20080817_Phil_Sheridan__A_golden_opportunity_to_watch_history_unfold__one_lap_at_a_time.html
Phil Sheridan: A golden opportunity to watch history unfold, one lap at a time
BEIJING - The best thing about watching Michael Phelps all week was that you knew from the first jump off the block until the last touch of a wall that you were seeing history.
Every time he raced, he won. Every time he won, he set a world record. You couldn't watch without mentally fast-forwarding 20 years to a day you could tell your grandkids that you saw Olympic history being made.
Eight golds.
Who wouldn't want to travel back in time to watch Mark Spitz in Munich? To be able sit in the arena for Nadia's perfect 10s? Wouldn't it be cool to go back and watch Paavo Nurmi with your own eyes? Knowing what you know, could those eyes hold back the tears if you were in Berlin watching Jesse Owens?
All week, the atmosphere in the Water Cube has been as surreal as the building itself. Phelps was taking the drama out by winning so easily. He was so perfect, it was becoming almost ho-hum.
Then came last night's 100-meter butterfly.
Trailing Serbia's Milorad Cavic in the final meters, Phelps needed every ounce of his strength and every centimeter of his wingspan to lunge forward and win the race by 1/100th of a second. The slacker failed to set his seventh world record, though. He managed a measly Olympic record.
Serbian officials asked race officials to review the videotape of the race. That tape can be slowed to 1/10,000th of a second and it showed that Phelps touched first.
"I think everybody on the planet has been trying to give him some kind of obstacle," said Ian Crocker, who finished fourth in the event, but held onto his world record. "We're trying to. He's kind of crossed the bridge and taken swimming to the next level."
The charm of this story is in the details. On Friday, Phelps blew away the field in the 200 individual medley, shattering another world record. He stood on the top step of the podium, which by now must have a permanent impression of his long bony feet, accepted his sixth gold medal of the week, and listened to the national anthem.
If Francis Scott Key were alive for ASCAP royalties, he'd owe Phelps a thank-you note.
http://www.philly.com/inquirer/sports/20080817_Phil_Sheridan__A_golden_opportunity_to_watch_history_unfold__one_lap_at_a_time.html
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Re: Phelps Did It
by Pale Rider Sun Aug 17, 2008 1:27 pm
And he did it without the help of performance enhancing drugs. Good man.
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Re: Phelps Did It
by red states rule Sun Aug 17, 2008 2:35 pm
Pale Rider wrote:And he did it without the help of performance enhancing drugs. Good man.
He worked his ass off to do it. Now his future looks great. I hope he takes advantage of it
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