Michael Phelps

Michael Phelps was once described by his coach as a ‘solitary man’. In February 2015, he announced that he was engaged to former Miss California Nicole Johnson. It is said they had met in 2009 and temporarily broke up in 2012. Their son, Boomer Robert Phelps was born on May 5, 2016.

Michael Phelps was born to Michael Fred Phelps and Deborah Sue ‘Debbie’ in Baltimore, Maryland. He has two elder sisters: Hilary and Whitney. While his father was employed as a state trooper, his mother was into the profession of teaching. Young Michael gained his education from Towson High School.

It was Fred’s strong athletic capabilities that the children acquired soon enough. Hilary, Whitney and Michael got into swimming at an early age. Though Hilary showed great promise, she opted out of the sport. Whitney took to it for a little longer duration than her sister, even trying her luck to gain admission in the US Olympic team in 1996. However, it was young Phelps who not only took to the sport, but also excelled in it.

Phelps took to swimming at the age of seven. Initially scared of putting his face in the water, he took to floating in the pool and no sooner mastered backstroke. Just when Phelps seemed to get on with his fear, he was diagnosed with attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). However, he worked his way through the condition along with the help of his mother Debbie.

In the early days, swimming to Phelps was more the result of the influence cast by his sisters and his requirement for an outlet to let go of his bundled energy. It was while watching Tom Malchow and Tom Dolan compete in the 1996 Summer Games in Atlanta that Phelps dreamt of making it big by turning swimming into his professional choice

Phelps took training under Bob Bowman, at the North Baltimore Aquatic Club, Recognizing the capability and potential that Phelps showed, Bowman started an intense training programme with him. Soon, Phelps found himself a place at the US National B Team.

The fairytale start to a career was safely guarded in the coming years as Phelps excelled in the sport and drew limelight at national and international levels. With each success, he climbed the success ladder to reach his dream of making it big.

The swimming fraternity got a first-hand taste of Phelps’ brilliance and prowess in the sport at the World Championship Trials for the 2001 World Aquatics Championships. At the age of 15 years and 9 months, he broke the world record in the 200-meter butterfly to become the youngest swimmer ever to set a swimming world record.

With each passing competition, it seemed as if Phelps was competing with himself rather than with his competitors to bring out the best. An excellent example of this was when he broke his own record in the 200-meter butterfly at the World Championship in Fukuoka to secure his first medal

Year 2002 witnessed Phelps’ participation in the Pan Pacific Championship. While at the selection process, he broke numerous world records, at the main event, Phelps securely brought home three gold medals and two silver medals. Much to the disappointment, while he won the 400-meter individual medley and 200-meter individual medley, he stood second at what he did best — the 200-meter butterfly.

In the 2003 World Championship, Phelps won the 200-meter freestyle, 200-meter backstroke, and the 100-meter butterfly. With this, he became the first ever American swimmer to record wins at three different races including three different strokes at a national championship.

Phelps’ big ticket for transformation and enrichment of the sport came in 2007 with the World Championship. He contested in seven events, winning a gold medal in each and creating world records in five of them. Throughout the events, Phelps outperformed not only his competitors but himself as well to set personal bests.

Phelps seven gold medal haul was record in itself, breaking Ian Thorpe’s six-medal victory in 2001 World Championship. He won the same for five individual events: 100 m and 200 m butterfly, 200 m freestyle and 200m and 400 m individual medley, and two group matches: 4X100 m and 4X200 m freestyle relay. An eighth medal could have been dropped into his kitty had Ian Crocker did not make an early exit from the competition!

The same year, Phelps' performance at the US Nationals Indianapolis, was impeccable as he excelled his own personal best by creating a world record at the 200 m backstroke.

Just when everything seemed to be candy-flossed and picture-perfect, Phelps fractured his right wrist by accidentally falling on to a patch of ice. His training cycle was interrupted leaving Phelps heartbroken. However, not the one to take to be disheartened, he practiced using a kickboard which acted as a boon as Phelps ended adding a little more strength to his kick.

At the 2008 Beijing Olympics, Phelps was the man to look out for as the world awaited his eight gold medal haul and newer world records! For everyone, it seemed as if the moment Phelps jumped into the pool, a medal and a world record automatically fell into his kitty. However, there was much hard work and labor that went into the same.