OT: Michael Phelps
 

Posted By: <b>James Feagin</b><p>As an American, Marylander and Baltimoron <img src="/images/happy.gif" height=14 width=14> I'm sure I'm not alone in feeling fortunate to watch a part of sports history over the past week. The way Phelps has handled himself is absolutely impressive. Driving through Baltimore last night, the place was absolutely nuts! Congratulations Michael Phelps on your 8 gold medals!<br /><br />James

OT: Michael Phelps
 

Posted By: <b>CN</b><p> I kind of feel sorry for the guy. He will probably go down as the greatest Olympian ever and I just read that he will train for London in 2012 but what kind of life does he have? He swims for 5 hours every day then eats and sleeps. I read somewhere that he rarely socializes out and does not have a girlfriend. Mark Spitz said that in 1972 he put half the time in that Phelps does and was able to half a normal life. That said it has been an exciting week and I am sure Dick Ebersol at NBC is thrilled as is the rest of the country. In New York Phelps actually managed to get some top billing in spite of the Yanks,Mets,Giants and Favre. Very impressive CN.

OT: Michael Phelps
 

Posted By: <b>Ted Zanidakis</b><p>Yes indeed....Baltimore has been the "Home of Champions" since the 19th Century.<br /><br />TED Z<br /><br />

OT: Michael Phelps
 

Posted By: <b>barrysloate</b><p>How does Michael Phelps earn a living as a professional swimmer? I know he will get numerous endorsements, but there are no professional swimming leagues. I don't see him selling insurance or driving a cab when he is done in the pool.

OT: Michael Phelps
 

Posted By: <b>john/z28jd</b><p> He got a 1 million dollar bonus for equaling Spitz the other day from his top sponsor....add that on to what hes received before and what he will make in the future and im sure he doesnt have to worry about money now or any time soon,especially if he just trains eats and sleeps all the time

OT: Michael Phelps
 

Posted By: <b>Eric B</b><p>Rick Harrow (sp?), the Moneyball guy from Fox Sports syas he will make areound $40 million in endorsements. Plus 5 hours a day "swimming" is a lot less than 8 hours a day "working".

OT: Michael Phelps
 

Posted By: <b>paulstratton</b><p>I'm an unabashed flag waver so congrats to Phelps, but I'm not so sure about the greatest Olympian ever talk. Swimming hands out a lot of medals so he has more chances than a lot of other athletes to pile up wins. Still a great accomplishment.<br /><br />His auto card went from $25 to the $500-1000 range in no time. Wish I would have bought a stack of those puppies.<br /><br /> <br /><br />Baltimore has been the "Home of Champions" since the 19th Century? That's news to me. <br /><br />

OT: Michael Phelps
 

Posted By: <b>Bruce Dorskind</b><p><br />When one is determined to be the best at anything it requires 100% total dedication.<br /><br />Who cares about a trivial thing like a girl friend when one can be the best ever?<br /><br />Look at anyone in history who was the best ever, and you will find that their <br />dedication to their goal was everything<br /><br />1. Bill Gates<br />2. Tiger Woods<br />3. Ty Cobb<br />4. Jeffrson Burdick<br /><br />To break records, achieve the impossible, earn billions requires that one forget<br />social relationships and view the task as life's only mission.<br /><br />Many years ago, we were playing golf with Tom Seaver. He told us a story about<br />leaving the Reds Stadium at 9:30 PM after pitching the second game of a double header.<br />He heard noise on the field and called security. It was Pete Rose taking batting practice.<br />Seaver asked him why he was taking batting practice at 9:30 PM on a hot humid day after<br />going 4 for 7 in the doubleheader... Rose replied because they got me out 3 times.<br /><br />Bless Michael Phelps- his 100% dedication to greatness is the key to the ultimate success<br /><br />The whole problem with America is that everyone is too worried about life in balance<br />If you can't come in on Saturday, don't bother showing up on Sunday. Look at the mega law<br />firms, Goldman Sachs and the top 5 Hedge funds- they work around the clock and always<br />focus on the target. <br /><br />Bruce Dorskind<br />America's Toughest Want List<br /><br /><br /><br />

OT: Michael Phelps
 

Posted By: <b>Matt</b><p>"Many years ago, we were playing golf with Tom Seaver."<br /><br />was anyone else in your four-some?

OT: Michael Phelps
 

Posted By: <b>Andrew</b><p>That's an interesting story about Seaver.<br><br>"Take your life in your own hands and what happens? A terrible thing: no one to blame." -- Erica Jong

OT: Michael Phelps
 

Posted By: <b>Bruce Dorskind</b><p><br />Dear Matt:<br /><br />Tom Seaver worked for dad's company (Telecom) as a spokesperson<br />The ad campaign was "Hear Tom Pitch"<br /><br />Also in the group were dad and the club pro at the time time<br />Larry Laoretti Larry was famous because he was a cigar smoker<br />who won the US Senior Open back in the mid 1980's.<br /><br />Larry was the pro who taught us how to play golf<br /><br /><br />Bruce Dorskind<br />America's Toughest Want List<br /><br />

OT: Michael Phelps
 

Posted By: <b>SC</b><p>I've often thought that those that strive to be the best at anything, need to make sacrifices in most other areas of their lives. Talent can only carry you so far. Inevitably, you see the stories of the great ones - Tiger, Jordan, Jerry Rice, etc. training over and over, far beyond what "normal" athletes do.<br /><br />I'm sure Phelps could have a normal life, winning 3 golds and 2 bronze and going down as one of the top swimmers of his generation. But the difference between great and greatest was shown to be .01 of a second in the 100m Butterfly. How many athletes would spend all those lonely hours in the pool, to shave that extra fraction off their time...or would Silver be "good enough."<br /><br />

OT: Michael Phelps
 

Posted By: <b>peter ullman</b><p>Phelps has captivated the attention of the world, myself included, and has earned it. As a former Baltimoron...I too am very proud of his accomplishments and feel honoured to have witnessed his amazing feats with my friends and family this year. And I agree with Bruce...that great sacrifices need be made...to accomplish great things. He'll have plenty of time for women and drinking in his 30's and so on!

OT: Michael Phelps
 

Posted By: <b>Jim Thierfelder</b><p>There is no such thing as a normal life by someone else's standards. I am guessing that his training and preparation are pretty normal to him.<br /><br />The greatest olympian ever? Maybe, but I think we can agree that he is among the greatest ever.<br /><br />What I do know for sure is that I have been riveted watching his journey through the games and that at this time and place he is dominating his sport like few others have dominated any sport.

OT: Michael Phelps
 

Posted By: <b>barrysloate</b><p>Tom Seaver and Bill Gates, among others, have a wife and family. So it is possible to be very dedicated towards a goal and still have some sense of normalcy.<br /><br />And if Phelps is projected to earn $40 million in endorsements, then that is his career- selling other people's products (and swimming in between).

OT: Michael Phelps
 

Posted By: <b>Anonymous</b><p>He has a lovely wife (and now a daughter) who he began dating in 2001, and before that had a serious girlfriend. <br /><br />Jack Nicklaus, no slouch himself when it came to dedication to golf, was married (and had kids) very young.<br /><br />

OT: Michael Phelps
 

Posted By: <b>jdrum</b><p>He's certainly the greatest swimmer extant!

OT: Michael Phelps
 

Posted By: <b>Anonymous</b><p>In my opinion, Carl Lewis.

OT: Michael Phelps
 

Posted By: <b>paulstratton</b><p>L.Laoretti won the US Senior Open in 1992, not the mid-80's. Woods has had an amazingly normal life for someone of his stature, his mom and dad made sure of it. He went to college, ran track in high school, had girlfriends, etc.. Some people need total focus with no distractions to achieve great things, others perform better when they have balance in their life. <br /><br /> Phelps is great(perhaps the greatest), but the fact that he doesn't even compete in his sports signature events(50, 100 meter freestyle) is a gaping hole on his resume IMO.

OT: Michael Phelps
 

Posted By: <b>David Atkatz</b><p>"Goldman Sachs and the top 5 Hedge funds- they work around the clock and always<br />focus on the target."<br /><br />Now <i>there</i> is something to emulate.<br /><br />Our economy is in the crapper because this country no longer produces anything tangible.<br /><br />Steel? Nope. Electronics? Hardly. Automobiles? Don't make me laugh.<br /><br />The only thing we "manufacture" are "financial products."

OT: Michael Phelps
 

Posted By: <b>James Feagin</b><p>"but the fact that he doesn't even compete in his sports signature events(50, 100 meter freestyle) is a gaping hole on his resume IMO."<br /><br />I'm not a swimming expert at all, but this doesn't strike me as a fair statement. Just like there are different styles of runners, I'm sure there are different types of swimmers. Usain Bolt (who won the sprint in track and field yesterday) probably isn't suited to a marathon just as an endurance swimmer like Phelps probably isn't suited to a swimming sprint like the 50M. <br />

OT: Michael Phelps
 

Posted By: <b>barrysloate</b><p>David- I like to think of hedge fund managers as glorified paper pushers. As you said, they earn hundreds of millions of dollars without producing anything.

OT: Michael Phelps
 

Posted By: <b>Anonymous</b><p>Due to scheduling, not only of the Olympics themselves but the Olympic trials, including of course qualifying heats and semifinals as well as the final, there is a logistical limit to how many events one man can swim. Perhaps that explains why Phelps doesn't swim the 100m freestyle.

OT: Michael Phelps
 

Posted By: <b>jay wolt</b><p>Phelps is impressive and I'm happy I got to witness history.<br />He seems like a great kid and down to earth.<br /><br />But if I had to choose the greatest Olympian it would be<br />Jesse Owens. What he did in 1936 in Germany under that<br />climate is incredible as it went beyond the track & field.

OT: Michael Phelps
 

Posted By: <b>Bruce Dorskind</b><p><br /><br />in the bank large amounts<br /><br /><br />To call hedge fund paper pushers would be like calling Ty Cobb<br />a little leaguer<br /><br /><br />The guys who take the risks deserve to earn the rewards<br /><br />Those socialists who sit back and complain are just watching<br />the world go by]<br /><br />America is about competition. Competitive advantage and<br />winning. Blaming Goldman Sachs for America's problems<br />would be as silly as when the Yankees blamed the National<br />League for not having a designated hitter and causing for Wang's injury.<br /><br /><br />One of the major reasons so many cards have achieved record<br />prices was the interest that a dozen or Wall Street multi-millioniares<br />took in baseball cards. Don't forget it.<br /><br />Bruce Dorskind<br />America's Toughest Want List<br /><br />

OT: Michael Phelps
 

Posted By: <b>barrysloate</b><p>I was being a little tongue in cheek.<br /><br />I recognize the skills and risks taken by these money managers, but the fact is they produce nothing but deals. That is not the way to build a nation; it just builds one's personal portfolio.<br /><br />And do you really think I'm a socialist? Just curious.

OT: Michael Phelps
 

Posted By: <b>Eric</b><p>Bruces...do you guy(s) care about anything other than money?<br /><br />Just curious.

OT: Michael Phelps
 

Posted By: <b>Ted Zanidakis</b><p>DITTO....to your post on Jessie Owens in 1936.<br /><br />And, I will add Mack Robinson (Jackie's older brother) to this....as he came in 2nd to Jessie....<br />and, won the Silver Medal in 1936.<br /><br />TED Z<br /><br />

OT: Michael Phelps
 

Posted By: <b>Anonymous</b><p>Jesse Owens' feat was special no doubt about it. But Carl Lewis won golds in FOUR Olympics, including four consecutive long jump gold medals. Track and field is the core sport of the Olympics, and Carl Lewis is the greatest track and field athlete ever. EDIT TO ADD And if it weren't for the 1980 boycott Lewis probably would have won golds in five, as he had qualified for the team at the age of 19.

OT: Michael Phelps
 

Posted By: <b>paulstratton</b><p>"Due to scheduling, not only of the Olympics themselves but the Olympic trials, including of course qualifying heats and semifinals as well as the final, there is a logistical limit to how many events one man can swim. Perhaps that explains why Phelps doesn't swim the 100m freestyle."<br /><br />Sure there are scheduling conflicts, but he made his schedule around events he knew/thought the could win. He knew he couldn't win the 50 or 100 free so he didn't include them in his rotation. Who knows, maybe if he only swam the 100 and 50 free he could win them, but then we probably wouldn't be talking about him right now, so he probably made the right choice. <br /><br />

OT: Michael Phelps
 

Posted By: <b>Anonymous</b><p>I have never seen a man so relentlessly negative.

OT: Michael Phelps
 

Posted By: <b>barrysloate</b><p>Perhaps Carl Lewis does get the nod as the greatest Olympian ever, but I wouldn't make light of Phelps' accomplishments. It is very difficult to win eight out of eight events, including seven world records. And the one event he didn't set a record may be the most compelling of all, as he snatched victory from second place with a one-hundredth of a second margin.

OT: Michael Phelps
 

Posted By: <b>Dan Bretta</b><p>"I'm the fastest man in the world Joe Piscopo!"<br /><br /><object width="425" height="344"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/LymeOcJyJtg&hl=en&fs=1"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/LymeOcJyJtg&hl=en&fs=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowfullscreen="true" width="425" height="344"></embed></object>

OT: Michael Phelps
 

Posted By: <b>jdrum</b><p>My guess is that Michael Phelps is quite comfortable with his place in the Olympic pantheon.

OT: Michael Phelps
 

Posted By: <b>Jeff Lichtman</b><p>It is hard to realistically challenge the notion that Phelps is the greatest Olympian ever considering his 14 golds over two Olympic games. In terms of difficulty of feats, I'd say Eric Heiden is up there with his 5 golds at very different skating lengths in 1980.

OT: Michael Phelps
 

Posted By: <b>Matt</b><p>This is one of those debates like an MVP debate where the discussion is really about what the criterion is for the title as opposed to who best meets that criterion.

OT: Michael Phelps
 

Posted By: <b>David Atkatz</b><p>"One of the major reasons so many cards have achieved record prices was the interest that a dozen or Wall Street multi-millioniares took in baseball cards. Don't forget it."<br /><br />Is this a great country, or what?

OT: Michael Phelps
 

Posted By: <b>paulstratton</b><p>I disagree with your assessment Peter.<img src="/images/happy.gif" height=14 width=14> I think I said Phelps was great at least a few times. My argument was more in the context of greatest Olympian ever, I think it's clear he is one of the two best swimmers in Olympic history. If Carl Lewis had never won the 100 meters, but won other distance events, would you still consider him the greatest Olympian?

OT: Michael Phelps
 

Posted By: <b>David Atkatz</b><p>"The guys who take the risks deserve to earn the rewards"<br /><br />The risks? Do you mean risking billions in other people's money? Omigod, what a risk.<br /><br />Not like the guys who climb and build cell phone towers, so you're never cut off from your next big deal. Or the fisherman who make sure you have your required Omega-3 fatty acids. Or the workers at slaughterhouses, and Tyson chicken plants, who keep leaving parts of their own anatomies in the ground chuck.<br /><br />Nope. Those hedge fund managers are the <i>real</i> risk takers, yesiree.

OT: Michael Phelps
 

Posted By: <b>Anonymous</b><p>Paul not sure. If it were shot put and discus I wouldn't have the same assessment, but if it were the long jump and the 200 I might.

OT: Michael Phelps
 

Posted By: <b>Bob</b><p>I heard a report on ESPN yesterday that Phelps will command more money in advertising, etc. revenue than any previous athlete. I would question if he will ever command Tiger Woods money but he is going to be a very wealthy man.<br />If I had to pick a greatest Olympian of all time, I would always pick a team, the 1980 USA hockey team. It's probably hard for anyone to realize or appreciate how their performance went beyond Sports and touched people personally who didn't witness it. You guys under 40 probably can't really relate <img src="/images/happy.gif" height=14 width=14>

OT: Michael Phelps
 

Posted By: <b>Jeff Lichtman</b><p>"I think it's clear he is one of the two best swimmers in Olympic history."<br /><br />Paul, what are you smoking? Did you at least watch last night's race? He was in third place when he hit the water...and in a very short distance (100 m) he finished way in front. He is totally dominant.

OT: Michael Phelps
 

Posted By: <b>Anonymous</b><p>I doubt anyone else would agree, and I think you need a running background to truly appreciate it, but to me Lasse Viren's fifth place finish in a very competitive 1976 marathon field, in his first marathon run ever, after WINNING the 5,000 and 10,000, is one of the most remarkable things I ever saw.

OT: Michael Phelps
 

Posted By: <b>Anonymous</b><p>I would give the nod to Phelps but it is not a no brainer.<br /><br />Spitz could have won 8 golds if they had a 50.<br /><br />Spitz's margins of victory were, I believe, generally larger. No photo finishes.<br /><br />Spitz won the glamour event, the 100 free.<br /><br />On the other side of the ledger, the relays are more competitive now and the pressure on Phelps was far greater. And Phelps had a much stronger debut than Spitz, who was a relative disappointment in Mexico City. And, what tips the balance for me is that Phelps won gold in an individual medley. Not quite the same of course as the impossible feat of someone winning an individual track or field event and the decathlon, but still...<br />

OT: Michael Phelps
 

Posted By: <b>paulstratton</b><p>I'm not smoking anything. I watched all of his races in awe like everyone else. It's really hard to compare era's though. Was Bonds better than Ruth? Is Tiger better than Nicklaus? If Spitz hadn't had a dream to win 7 in one Olympics then I doubt Phelps would be standing here today with 8. Do you really believe Nicklaus would only have 18 majors if the record was 22? You can't just forget about the original record setters, sorry.

OT: Michael Phelps
 

Posted By: <b>Jeff Lichtman</b><p>Peter, good point about the marathoner who had won the 5K and 10K; it's akin to a great home run hitter suddenly pitching a shutout in the next game: two totally different skill sets (and the agony he must have been in to have to run the marathon after those shorter races).

OT: Michael Phelps
 

Posted By: <b>Anonymous</b><p>Jeff, he also had to run qualifying heats for the 5 and 10K. To win both those events is a remarkable accomplishment. To then go out, having never run a marathon, and to finish fifth in a highly competitive field including Frank Shorter is mind boggling. I don't know what to compare it with.

OT: Michael Phelps
 

Posted By: <b>Bobby Binder</b><p>I was a swimmer and even swam on the same team with Dara Torres when she was 11 and a little brat.<br /><br />You can not compare what Spitz and Phelps have done. When Spitz swam USA came in 1-2-3 in virtually every event. The world as a whole did not really care about swimming.<br /><br />Now swimming is huge world wide and the competition is much fiercer then in 1972.

OT: Michael Phelps
 

Posted By: <b>paulstratton</b><p>According to that logic you can't compare any past athletes to today's athletes unless the entire world was competing in their particular sport from that sports inception? I think the all-time greats would have dominated their sport without regard to the era in which they competed.

OT: Michael Phelps
 

Posted By: <b>Dennis Mosley</b><p>I have not heard mention of Jim Thorpe, most likely the greatest Natural athlete of all time, we're talking raw talent here not polished up like today's athletes. No disrespect meant to Phelps or other great Olympians.