2012 OLYMPICS: MICHAEL PHELPS TO GO FOR 7 GOLDS
By Maloney L. Samaco
PhilBoxing.com
Wed, 04 Jul 2012
Michael Phelps holds the Olympic record of eight gold medals in a single Olympics in 2008 in Beijing. But he is not getting any younger at the age of 27.
Phelps dropped the 200-meter freestyle from his Olympic program, and he will compete in seven swimming events in London and will not be able to repeat his 8 in ?08 achievement.
?So you won't hear the number eight again," declared Bob Bowman, Phelp?s personal coach. "It just makes sense. Nobody should be expected to do that twice. Once was more than enough, trust me."
Bowman said both of them decided to exclude the 200 m freestyle event to relax Phelps a little bit to give him more power for the relays.
During the Olympic trials, Phelps qualified in five individual events and is slated to swim all three relays, like he did in Beijing. But dropping the 200 free, his remaining individual races are the 200 and 400 individual medley (IM) and the 100 and 200 butterfly events.
Phelps won the 200 m freestyle at US Olympic trials but is expected to face stiff competition during the Games. He will now get a day off from individual swimming on the second day of the competition, one day after his race in the punishing 400 IM.
Instead of swimming heats and semis of the 200 m freestyle on the opening Sunday of the Games, he'll likely swim one leg of the 4x100 freestyle relay. This allows him to really focus his energy on the 4x100 relay the second night of the Games.
The 200 m freestyle final is scheduled for Monday night, the same day Phelps will race in 200 m butterfly heats and semifinals. Dropping the three 200 free swims (heats, semis and finals) gives him more rest, and will give him a more convenient quest to become the all-time top medalist at the Olympics.
The relay final will be on the same day as the prelims and semifinals of the 200 free. Bowman said he believed Phelps could win the 200 free but that he wanted Phelps ready for the 4x100 freestyle relay, in which the Australians are expected to confront the long-established US supremacy.
Ricky Berens, a participant in the team relays, moved up to take Phelps' place in the 200 m freestyle. Bowman said they chose between the 400 IM or 200 free of which to drop. He wanted to keep the 400 IM because it is on the first day of competition and he wants to have a gap in the seven-event program.
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