Michael Phelps(Suspended for 3 months)

[Rasputin]

Michael Phelps continued his gold rush Wednesday, winning two more gold medals and smashing two world records.

The wins – his 10th and 11th career golds – make him with winningest Olympian in history. As the announcer at the National Aquatics Center declared, that makes him "arguably the greatest Olympian of all time."

(The comment earned a smile from Phelps, who remained stoic for most of the day's competition.)

The day began less than auspiciously, when Phelps's goggles filled up with water during the 200-meter butterfly. The 23-year-old still won handily – in a world-record time of 1:52.03 – but he was visibly annoyed after he touched the wall.

"I couldn't see anything for the last 100 [meters]," Phelps said afterward. "It just kept getting worse and worse through the race."

Although he was disappointed in his time, Phelps begrudgingly admitted, "for the circumstances, I guess it's not too bad."

Actually, it got much better. Later in the day, Phelps led off the U.S. 800 freestyle relay. The team – which included Ryan Lochte, Ricky Berens and Peter Vanderkaay – won gold in under 7 minutes, with a mark of 6:58.56. (That shattered the Americans' previous world record by 3.63 seconds.)

"It's everything I ever dreamed about," Phelps said of winning his second relay gold in Beijing. "On the podium, I kept tearing [up] at it. I'm almost at a loss for words .... It's the best thing having four American guys ... swim all well together."

The gold medals give Phelps his fourth and fifth wins in China – putting him more than halfway toward his historic quest of claiming eight victories in the Games. (American swimmer Mark Spitz holds the current record of seven gold medals in a single Summer Olympics.)

"From now on, it's just a downward slope," Phelps said. "The end is close. I love it! I've still got some left in the tank."

[abadani69]

شناگر برجسته آمريکايي با کسب چهارمين مدال طلاي خود در مسابقات المپيک پکن و با احتساب 6 مدال طلا در بازي هاي آتن، پرافتخارترين ورزشکار تاريخ المپيک لقب گرفت.
به گزارش خبرگزاري آسوشيتدپرس از پکن، مايکل فلپس که روز گذشته با کسب سومين مدال طلا نام خود را در کنار بزرگاني چون کارل لوييس و مارک اسپيتز قرار داده بود صبح امروز با قهرماني در 200 متر پروانه به تنهايي در صدر جدول رده بندي برترين ورزشکاران حاضر در مسابقات المپيک قرار گرفت.
با وجودي که عينک شناي فلپس در اين رقابت دچار مشکل شده بود و او حتي نمي توانست ديوار استخر را مشاهده کند، اين شناگر با زمان يک دقيقه و 52 ثانيه و 3 صدم ثانيه مقام نخست را از آن خود کرد و رکورد قبلي خود را که سال گذشته در مسابقات جام جهاني ثبت کرده بود، 6 صدم ثانيه بهبود بخشيد.
فلپس در چهار رشته ديگر مي تواند رقابت کند و قصد دارد با کسب 4 مدال طلاي ديگر رکورد تعداد مدال طلا در يک دوره مسابقات المپيک را به خود اختصاص دهد.
پس از فلپس، لاژلو چه رقيب اصلي او از مجارستان با اختلاف 61 صدم ثانيه به مقام دوم و مدال نقره رسيد و تاکشي ماتسودا از ژاپن با يک دقيقه و 52 ثانيه و 97 صدم ثانيه در جايگاه سوم قرار گرفت.
پرافتخارترين قهرمان مسابقات المپيک پس از کسب مدال طلا گفت:"عينک من خراب شده بود و ديد خوبي نداشتم، مي خواستم زمان يک دقيقه و 51 ثانيه و يا حتي بهتر را به دست آورم اما در اين شرايط فکر نمي کنم خيلي بد باشد."

[abadani69]

"مايکل فلپس" شناگر برجسته آمريکايي که در بيست و نهمين دوره بازيهاي المپيک موفق به کسب هشت مدال طلا شده ، معتقد است ياد گرفتن زبان چيني براي او به مراتب سخت تر از کسب مدالهاي طلا است.
روزنامه "چاينا ديلي" روز چهارشنبه به نقل از "مايکل فلپس" نوشت : «آموختن زبان چيني بسيار سخت تر از کسب هشت مدال طلا است. در واقع سخت ترين کاري است که در همه عمرم تجربه کرده ام.»
فلپس در دوران مدرسه ، زبان فرانسوي و آلماني را آموخته اما چيني را به مراتب سخت تر مي داند.
وي اظهار داشت : *«اين زبان بسيار دشوار است. بعد از اينکه فرانسوي و آلماني را آموختم ، براي ياد گرفتن زبان چيني هم اقدام کردم. کمي بعد مي توانستم اندکي حرف بزنم و بفهمم اما همه کلمات ، آواها و تلفظ ها بسيار دشوارند.»
فلپس در پاسخ به خبرنگاران که مي خواستند نحوه صحبت کردن او به زبان چيني را بشنوند ، گفت :* «لهجه من اصلا خوب نيست بنابراين نمي خواهم باعث شرمندگي خودم شوم.»
وي وعده داد که در بازيهاي المپيک 2012 لندن نيز حضور خواهد يافت تا در مواد ديگري شرکت کرده و بر تنوع مدالهايش اضافه کند اما مهمترين رقابتي که در پيش دارد ، مسابقه هاي شناي قهرماني جهان در سال 2009 در رم است.
فلپس تصريح کرد : بعد از بازيهاي المپيک پکن تنها چيزي که نياز دارد ، يک تعطيلات طولاني است.
وي امسال از مجموع هفت مدال طلاي "مارک اسپيتز"* شناگر آمريکايي در بازيهاي المپيک 1972 مونيخ عبور کرده و اکنون رکورددار بيشترين مدال در يک دوره از بازيهاي المپيک است.

[abadani69]

"مايکل فلپس" پسر طلايي بازي هاي المپيک 2008 پکن به خاطر کسب هشت مدال طلا در اين بازي ها به يک ستاره ورزشي در جهان تبديل شد اما کمتر کسي مي داند که هدف واقعي او از ياد گرفتن شنا، قهرماني نبوده است.

نشريه "The Sun" به نقل از وي نوشت، مادرش او را مجبور کرد شنا ياد بگيرد تا غرق نشود.
فلپس که قهرمان محبوبش "مايکل جردن" اسطوره آمريکايي بسکتبال است، با اشاره به اينکه همه چيز از دعواهاي دوران کودکي شروع شد، گفت: بچه ها عادت داشتند مرا اذيت کنند اما همين امر مرا به انسان بهتري تبديل کرد.
فوق ستاره شناي آمريکا افزود: روزهايي بود که در اتوبوس مدرسه بچه ها کلاه بيس بال مرا از پنجره بيرون مي انداختند. جالب است چون همان کساني که اين کارها را مي کردند حال سعي مي کنند که با من دوست شوند اما پاسخ من به آنها "نه" است.
به گفته فلپس، شک و ترديد معلم هايش به او، دليل ديگري شد که او براي ثابت کردن دل و جراتش، بيشتر و بيشتر تلاش کند.
وي اظهار داشت: يکي از معلم هايم در مدرسه متوسطه که نامش را به خاطر ندارم گفت که من هرگز موفق نخواهم شد. با شنيدن اين حرف تصميم گرفتم بيشتر تلاش کنم تا به او ثابت کنم اشتباه مي کند. رسيدن به چيزي که قبلا هيچکس موفق به انجام آن نشده بود، آرزويي بود که به حقيقت پيوست.
فلپس ادامه داد: شنا به من کمک کرد به اختلال کم توجهي که به خاطر بيش فعالي داشتم چيره شوم. نمي توانستم آرام يکجا بنشينم و تمرکز نداشتم. شنا در آب و در يک خط به من کمک کرد بيشتر تمرکز کنم و بدون توجه به اين بيماري رشد کنم.

[abadani69]

Michael Phelps has been suspended from competition for three months by USA Swimming, the latest fallout from a photo that showed the Olympic great inhaling from a marijuana pipe.

The sport’s national governing body also cut off its financial support to Phelps for the same three-month period, effective Thursday.

“This is not a situation where any anti-doping rule was violated, but we decided to send a strong message to Michael because he disappointed so many people, particularly the hundreds of thousands of USA Swimming member kids who look up to him as a role model and a hero,” the federation said in a statement.

“Michael has voluntarily accepted this reprimand and has committed to earn back our trust.”

[abadani69]

Michael Phelps was suspended from competition for three months by USA Swimming, the latest fallout from a photo that showed the Olympic great inhaling from a marijuana pipe.

The sport’s national governing body also cut off its financial support to Phelps for the same three-month period, effective Thursday.

“This is not a situation where any anti-doping rule was violated, but we decided to send a strong message to Michael because he disappointed so many people, particularly the hundreds of thousands of USA Swimming member kids who look up to him as a role model and a hero,” the Colorado-based federation said in a statement.

“Michael has voluntarily accepted this reprimand and has committed to earn back our trust.”

Phelps won a record eight gold medals in Beijing and returned to America as one of the world’s most acclaimed athletes. Now he’s enduring a wave of bad news in the wake of the photo, published Sunday by News of the World, a British tabloid.

Earlier Thursday, cereal and snack maker Kellogg Co. announced it wouldn’t renew its sponsorship contract with Phelps, saying his behavior is “not consistent with the image of Kellogg.” The swimmer appeared on the company’s cereal boxes after his Olympic triumph.

Phelps has acknowledged “regrettable” behavior and “bad judgment.” He didn’t dispute the authenticity of the photo, reportedly taken at a house party while Phelps was visiting Columbia, S.C., in November during an extended break from training.

The 23-year-old has resumed training in his hometown of Baltimore, but his plans to return to competitive swimming will have to be put on hold. Phelps had been planning to compete in early March at a Grand Prix meet in Austin, Texas.

Now, he won’t be able to allowed to compete until early May, which would give him just over two months to get in some racing before July’s world championships in Rome.

[Rasputin]

Michael Phelps Admits to 'Bad Mistake'

For Michael Phelps, what started as a night of celebrating with a small group in South Carolina turned into what he called "an awful judgment."

An email later alerted Phelps to the fact that an infamous photograph of him holding a bong had started to surface, he tells Matt Lauer in a Today interview airing Friday.

"I had no idea really what to do," he says. "You know, I knew that I'd made a mistake and made a bad judgment."

Lauer says to Phelps, "I have to ask you, were you smoking pot?"

Not directly answering the question, Phelps replies, "It was a bad mistake. I mean, we all know what, you know, what you and I are talking about. It's a stupid mistake. And it's something that, you know, I have to, and I want to teach other people not to make that mistake."

On Feb. 23, Richland County sheriff Leon Lott said that no charges would be filed against Phelps or anyone present at the University of South Carolina party that November night due to lack of evidence.