August
14, 2004
THE ALLURE OF EIGHT GOLD MEDALS
Without question, in the weeks leading up to Athens, the
face of the American team has been swimmer Michael Phelps.
Why the hype? Because of the allure of eight gold medals. In the
Research Room, we field a lot of questions about Phelps. Why? It is
feasible, although unlikely, that the young man from Maryland could
achieve this feat, and break Mark Spitz's
Olympic record of seven golds in one Games. Further, if he achieved
this astonishing deed, he would tie Soviet gymnast Alexander Dityatin's
all-time medal record for a single Games. Is he a remarkable swimmer?
Absolutely. Perhaps the most gifted ever. His wing span (arm span?)
tops 76-inches, he is extraordinary at most any stroke put before him,
and he has a head for competition that seems unparalleled. On a strong
U.S. swimming squad, he stands out as an unprecedented phenom. But what
lies before him is not easy. Unlike Spitz, Phelps has never competed in
college events, as he only graduated from Towson High School a year ago
and has put his academic career on hold for a while. He is also
proposing to swim an Olympic program that is arguably more difficult
than Spitz's was. Spitz was a freestyle and butterfly guy, and kept his
distances at 100m and 200m. Phelps looks to swim four different strokes
in Athens - backstroke, butterfly, freestyle, and breast - over
distances that range from 100m to 400m. And the international field is
perhaps deeper and more specialized than ever before, creating stiff
competition for the young American in every lane. One of the highlights
of these Games, without a doubt, looks to be the 200m freestyle, which
will feature Phelps, Australian Ian Thorpe
(one of my favorite athletes from Sydney! Go Thorpedo!), Thorpe's
teammate Grant
Hackett, and Dutch sensation Pieter van den
Hoogenband, who won the event in Sydney. It is likely the only
individual race that will pit Thorpe and Phelps against each other,
putting one of the stars of Sydney 2000 against one who looks to be one
of the stars of Athens 2004. So let's all look forward to Monday,
August 16th, when some serious waves should be made.
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Be
sure to check back often
for Dr. Amy Bass's updates
to her Online CNR
Olympic Diary.
