Translated material
Insatiable Phelps
The 23-year-old American started the Olympics with another world record
Michael Phelps from the USA, in his third Olympics, won his seventh medal of the highest standard. At a distance of 400 m in medley swimming, Phelps won with a world record of 4 minutes. 03.84 seconds, dropping almost two seconds from the previous achievement, which belonged to him and was established less than two months ago. In total, two world achievements fell on the first day of the swimming finals. The author of the second record, again at a distance of 400 m medley, was Australian Stephanie Rice - 4:29.45.Swimming finals at all Olympics cause unprecedented excitement. The current one was no exception, where even journalists with accreditation had to get tickets that were in short supply. Huge interest in yesterday's competition was generated by the participation in one of the events of the now seven-time Olympic champion American Michael Phelps, whose victory US President George W. Bush came to see.
True, the presence of the head of state at the Olympic Aquatic Center in no way affected the work of the media. No additional security was provided, despite Saturday's incident - the murder of a relative of one of the American coaches by a Chinese citizen. So the gloomy news did not overshadow the sports component of the swimming competitions. Moreover, shortly before these Games, Phelps announced that he intended to equal the total number of Olympic medals with the legendary compatriot Mark Spitz, who has nine gold medals.
Moreover, Phelps wants to surpass Spitz's seemingly unshakable record. At the 1972 Olympics in Munich, Mark won seven (!) gold medals. Phelps in Beijing, taking into account yesterday's start, was entered in eight disciplines - five personal and three relay. So he wants to win everywhere!
Phelps' new world record (it became his 26th, if we talk only about results in 50-meter pools) was predictable, despite the fact that the athletes themselves often call the Olympics the most unpredictable competitions. The American himself stated this after the final: he and coach Bob Bowman expected to cover the distance in four minutes and three seconds and agreed in advance that this start in the 400-meter medley would be Phelps’ last. There were more than enough prerequisites for a new world record: since 2002, the 23-year-old American “universal” has been updating his own records with enviable consistency (eight times) in the 400-meter medley, dropping almost six seconds over the past six years. Phelps's tactical layout along the distance was verified to the smallest detail. The only thing he complained about after the final competition was that he didn’t do well in the backstroke. “I am very happy that I won the gold medal. This is really a good start to these Games,” Phelps told reporters at a press conference, making it clear that this award will not be the only one in Beijing.
Four years ago, at his second Olympics in Athens, Phelps earned six gold medals. The era of the famous Australian Ian Thorpe has faded into oblivion: the American has surpassed his predecessor in many ways. For six years, Michael's biography was memorized. He started swimming at the age of five. His sister Whitney was also a swimmer. But not only for this reason, the parents brought their son to the pool so that he could swim for company. As a child, Phelps was very absent-minded and could not concentrate on one thing, which caused great difficulties while studying at school. Doctors advised the parents to try to overcome the disease with the help of physical exercises and to develop the boy’s coordination. And this turned out to be an unexpected result.
In the pool, Phelps felt like a fish in water. Ten years later, he made his debut at the Olympic Games in Sydney as part of the American team. But then he didn’t make it to the list of prize-winners, but he didn’t stop there either. He now trains two to five hours a day, seven times a week. In all his numerous interviews, the athlete says that his mother, who always believed in him, played a decisive role in his development as an athlete. “I again dedicate my victory to her, as well as all my medals - these are her awards,” the world record holder admitted.
By the way, this world achievement was not the only one in the past day. Two finalists - Australian Stephanie Rice and Kirsty Coventry from Zimbabwe (4:29.89) surpassed the world record of American Katie Hoff (4:31.12), dated June of this year. But in competitions only the best result is taken into account, so the athlete from Zimbabwe was forced to console herself with “silver”.
According to the only Russian participant in this final, Yana Martynova, although the results of our swimmers are growing, we cannot keep up with the world ones. What the athletes demonstrated in the preliminary competitions plunged many into a state of shock. Compared to previous Olympics, those who made it to the finals swam ten seconds faster. “I can’t find another word for what we saw, phenomenal,” said Yana Martynova. -- At the last Games in Athens, the final “closed” at 4.45. It's 4.36 now. Four years ago - 4.36, it was “bronze”. To say that people are progressing is to say nothing. The pace of development of world swimming is simply fantastic.”
Compared to the world records, the Russians' seconds look more than modest. But we have what we can. The task that Martynova faced was to get to the finals. As a result, she became seventh, at the previous Games she was 21st. In Beijing, Martynova improved her own achievement in the semifinals - she set a Russian record. Commenting on her performance at these Games, the athlete said that she considered the experiment with acclimatization (Russian swimmers arrived at the Games literally on the eve of the start, unlike many other teams who trained in China for two weeks) to be unsuccessful. “The preliminary heats end very late. Around ten in the evening we get to the hotel. I can't fall asleep right away. On the eve of the final, I hardly slept. Despite the morning training at Krugloy and the ones we spent here for three days, we couldn’t get into the routine. The trainers said that given the stress of the body, the results could improve, but this did not happen. Thank God I made it to the finals; at least I brought some points to our team. I will prepare for the next Games, if age permits,” summed up Yana Martynova.
The names of two other Russian participants in yesterday's finals - Yuri Prilukov and Nikita Lobintsev - also did not appear among the winners in the 400 m freestyle. After the start, Prilukov said that he considered this event as a rehearsal for his other Olympic swims. “I accelerated, felt the speed and got hit,” he explained. - Even the day before I said that the favorite would be the Korean Te Hwan Park. A lot of money is invested in his preparation, and he does not limit himself in anything. He can train as much as he wants and wherever he wants. I prepared for these Games in Korea, and after the World Championships in Australia. If we shift this situation onto our swimmers, if we had the same means... In any case, this should have been done not now, but three years ago.”