<p>I said he’s the most dominant swimmer in the world. How is that bashing him? All I said was that he is clearly not the best Olympian ever.</p>
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<p>Um, every swimming final has broken a world record in these Olympics and some have even fallen during semi’s. As the article mentions, new pool and suit technology make for faster races, which of course translates to more and more record breaking. </p>
<p>In my opinion, it is simply not fair to compare him with the superstars of other sports, for it is impossible for other athletes to compete as often as he does. And this does not mean he is the superior athlete, swimming just takes less of a toll on the body. Don’t get me wrong, I love Phelps and all that he done for us, but he is just not the “greatest” all-around athlete ever.</p>
<p>Dont try and chalk up his accomplishments to “new pool suit tech”. He goes shirtless in like half the races, lol. He is naturally gifted, with freakish measurements, and an incredible work ethic.</p>
<p>I understand that world records are broken…but doing so in a variety of swimming events(backstroke, medley, breaststroke, etc.) shows off his versatility.</p>
<p>My gosh, who cares if the NBC anchors are a little excited? If you dont like them showing a little patriotism at the world games, then dont watch.</p>
<p>Supporting American athletes, is that too bias?</p>
<p>And I dont feel like getting into this swimming vs. track debate, so I’ll just leave it at that.</p>
<p>I think Deion Sanders and Bo Jackson were two of the most unreal athletes ever (played at the highest levels of both pro football and baseball).</p>
<p>I never said that the only reason he breaks world record after world record is because of the new pool and suit technology. Of course, as I have been saying throughout this entire thread, the man is a beast. But trust me, the suits (even if it’s just the legs) and the better pools make a world of difference in swimming. It would prove difficult to find any person with some knowledge of the sport who would disagree with that. How else can you explain why almost every swimming final in these Olympics has resulted in a new world record? I’m not saying he’s not a world class athlete. I’m a huge fan of his and I really hope he gets the 8 gold medals (and he will) but it’s foolish to compare him with athletes from other sports.</p>
<p>Best Swimmer Ever : Yes
Best Olympian Ever: No.</p>
<p>I agree it’s a stretch to say Phelps is the best athlete ever. I doubt that he can run all that fast or can jump very high; otherwise, he probably would not have taken up swimming. The world’s best athletes play football, basketball, and soccer.</p>
<p>I’d throw track in there and call it a deal, because some of those guys are simply unreal. (this is coming from someone who doesn’t care for track)</p>
<p>Swimming simply isn’t intense enough to be put up there.</p>
<p>While I agree too many medals are awarded to swimming, i disagree with what you said. </p>
<p>Are you saying swimming isn’t tiring?! Swimming is every bit physically demanding as track. You think they can breeze through a world record run and not be a bit tired? Also, you can’t really do 100M and 1500M. Maybe 50M-200M, but not 1500M. Also the world record for swimming isn’t as easy to break as you make it sound. It’s not like the swimmers all decide to try 90% this time so next time they can do better…</p>
<p>We have just witnessed the Hermes-like Usain Bolt destroy the field in the 100m in record time, all while taking the time to savour his victory in the last few strides. I think he’s just as good a track athlete as Michael Phelps is a swimmer. If only they had a 50m sprint, as well as various permutations of the 100m dash…</p>
The number of track events I listed was only analogous in number to the quantity of medals available to swimmers, which for obvious reasons, is unavailable to track athletes. Swimming is certainly tiring. When I had a stress fracture from sprinting, I would swim in the pool to rehabilitate. Most runners do.</p>
<p>By the way, one of the main secrets to Phelps’ success is his “eating” habit… or rather the amount of food he consumes daily.</p>
<p>Phelps admits that he consumes approximately over 12,000 calories PER DAY. Now that is over FIVE times the amount an average man consumes everyday. By doing this, he is able to constantly reinforce much needed nutrients in his body at all times, along with the fact that he has very high metabolism (for every hour he spends in the pool, Phelps burns up to 1000 calories, while the average man’s lower metabolism can only make the person burn 100-200 calories during the same time period).</p>
<p>I guess you could say that he is a beast afterall… at least he eats like a beast.</p>
<p>Usain Bolt’s performance tonight was unfathomable. I don’t know how many of you caught Boldon’s analysis that had he not eased up in the final 15m, he probably could have broken 9.6, and that he probably topped out at over 30mph at some point during the race. I was absolutely blown away by that race.</p>
<p>I agree that Phelps easily claims “Best Swimmer Ever” but any title beyond that is a stretch. As someone pointed out, with the LZR and the pool technology, it’s even getting cloudier as to how much “better” swimmers are today. 20 swimming WRs were set in the finals this year, 18 in the previous two olympics combined. Between February and the end of June (i.e. the period immediately following the LZR’s debut) 37 WRs were set. It’s not a coincidence.</p>
<p>Regardless of whether Phelps is as amazing as some would like to claim, the fact of the matter is that he is an extremely talented and successful athlete. He will no doubt be immortalized among the likes of Michael Jordan and Babe Ruth as one of those athletes that defined their generation and left a legacy that persists long after they fade from the sport. We should all consider ourselves lucky to have witnessed such an amazing display of human accomplishment. This is what the Olympics are all about.</p>
<p>“Defined a generation”? That’s stretching it. In order to define an American generation, you need to do something like those Miracle on Ice kids did and embody something greater than athletics; in that case, it was the Cold War. Michael Phelps does not embody anything other than sheer athletic excellence.</p>
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