HomeFeaturesMichael Phelps: The Greatest Athlete Of All-Time

Michael Phelps: The Greatest Athlete Of All-Time

Once again, Michael Phelps has become national news and the biggest star of the Summer Olympics in Rio. When we think of the greatest sports athletes of all-time, a few names come to mind; Jim Thorpe, Muhammad Ali, Jim Brown, Bo Jackson, LeBron James… and now, Phelps. As tremendous as all these legacy athletes are, none of them have dominated a sport the way Phelps has dominated swimming.
America was introduced to Phelps (on a national level) when he qualified for the 2000 Summer Olympics at the age of 15. He became the youngest male to qualify for the U.S. Olympic swim team in 68 years. He did not win a medal in 2000, but he did finish 5th in the 200-meter butterfly. The rest of the world did not know it at the time, but in his first Olympics, we were witnessing a boy who would later become the greatest athlete to ever walk the earth.
[bibblio style=”bib–default bib–hover bib–white-label bib–row-2 bib–title-only bib–size-16 bib–font-arial” query_string_params=”e30=” recommendation_type=”optimised”]
Last week, Phelps won his 13th individual gold medal. That put him ahead of Leonidas Rhodes for most individual golds of all-time. (Sorry, there are no photos of Rhodes to be found.)That record stood for over 2,100 years; Rhodes set the mark in the year 152 BC.I have never seen an athlete in a team or solo sport be the best in his field for 12 years in a row. After all, “Father Time” is undefeated. But Phelps is at the end of his career and is still the best in the world. (He is the only American to win an individual gold — in swimming — past the age of 31.) If you were to construct the perfect swimmer in a laboratory, Phelps would be the model 100 out of 100 times. It is almost as if he was genetically made to be in a pool. His body, long arms, torso and big feet which act like flippers make him the ideal build.
Up until last week, there was one sports record that most experts agreed would never be broken. On March 2, 1962, Wilt Chamberlain set the NBA single-game scoring record by scoring 100 points for the Philadelphia Warriors against the New York Knicks. But there’s a new unbeatable record now set in stone: Phelps has 28 total Olympic medals. This is a record that won’t be broken in either 21 or 2,100 years. It will stand until the end of time. My kids, my grandkids and my great, great, great grandkids will never know what it is like to see someone win that many medals. Phelps is not only the greatest American athlete; he is the greatest athlete in the history of the world. He will be remembered for centuries. We were all lucky to witness his dominance for the past 12 years. What he has done will never be duplicated.
Michael Phelps
For more from Monte Perez, follow The Sports Whisperer on Twitter @Montetjwitter11.


Hero (Top) Feature Image (& Additional Image): © Phil Ellsworth / ESPN Images

Newsletter Signup Prompt