Phelps becomes most decorated Olympian in history
Michael Phelps is 27 years old, has gone to four Olympic games and won 19 Olympic medals. Phelps swam in three Pan Pacific Championships and won 16 medals. He swam in six World Championships, winning 33 medals. With a total of 68 medals and the amount of records he has set, Phelps is not only one of the best swimmers the world has ever seen, but also one of the best athletes the world has ever seen. Now, he is officially the greatest athlete in the history of the Olympic Games.
Phelps began swimming as a 7-year-old and it has been a fairytale story ever since. Phelps really began his career as a renowned swimmer when he joined the North Baltimore Aquatic Club and started to swim under the coaching of Bob Bowman. In 2000, at 15 years old, Phelps qualified for the 2000 Summer Olympics in Sydney, Australia. Sydney was the only Olympics that Phelps did not win medals in.
Ever since, Phelps has been a medal winning machine. He is unstoppable. Phelps did announce that the 2012 London Olympics would be his final Olympic appearance. What better way to finish off his last year at the Olympics by becoming the most decorated Olympian in history? On Tuesday, Phelps won his 19th medal by capturing gold in the 4×200 freestyle relay. With help from teammates Ryan Lochte, Conor Dwyer, and Ricky Berens, Phelps was able to finish off his 200 meters of freestyle with a two second lead.
Phelps’ 19 Olympic medals include:
2004 Olympic Games in Athens, Greece
100m butterfly: Gold
200m butterfly: Gold
200m individual medley: Gold
400m individual medley: Gold
4x200m freestyle: Gold
4x100m medley: Gold
200m freestyle: Bronze
4x100m freestyle: Bronze
2008 Olympic Games in Beijing, China
100m butterfly: Gold
220m butterfly: Gold
200m freestyle: Gold
200m individual medley: Gold
400m individual medley: Gold
4x100m freestyle relay: Gold
4x200m freestyle relay: Gold
4x100m medley relay: Gold
2012 Olympic Games in London, England (as of July 31)
4x200m freestyle relay: Gold
4x100m freestyle relay: Silver
200m butterfly: Silver
