Michael phelps is great, but is he the greatest?

Question

yes he won 8 goldmedals this olympics, yes he is one of the greatest olypians of all time, but is he the no 1 greatest of all time? usaine bolt won 100m sprit, n possibly 200m too, but thats that the limit in sprinting, there is no 100m backwards race, or 200m cartwheel race... there is not an oppertunity for a sprinter to win 8 gold medals in one olympics. well my point is, can phelps be called the greatest if he won 8 gold medals in swimming where there is many many events to have that opertunity?

Answer 1

I believe he is the greatest because I'm able to appreciate what it takes to be a high level, nationally ranked swimmer.

Can we compare him to Usaine Bolt? Maybe not. But if you want to try to compare him to a track and field athlete's ability to win 8 gold medals then here's the analogy:

Michael has the opportunity to win medals in a total of 16 events:

50-100-200-400-1500 Free

100-200 Back

100-200 Breast

100-200 Fly

200-400 IM

400-800 Free Relay

400 Medley Relay

Whereas Usaine Bolt has the ability to win 24 events:

100-200-400-800-1500-3000-5000-10,000-... steeplechase

20K-50K Race Walk

110 Hurdles-400 Hurdles

High Jump, Long Jump, Triple Jump, Pole Vault,

Shot Put, Discus, Hammer Throw

4x100 Relay, 4x400 Relay

Decathlon

So as you can see there are many more Track and Field events to choose from than Swimming events. For the open minded educated sports fan you can see it's much more difficult for a swimmer to win 8 gold medals than a Track and Field Athlete in this respect.

Your argument about running backwards and doing carwheels makes as much sense as saying the swimmers can't perform high jump, triple jump, and the steeple chase in the water. Trying to compare these two disciplines/sports is simply silly and makes no sense.

Those that say too many medals are awarded in swimming and that swimming isn't a true athletic event do not have the appreciation for the sport and should attempt a few of the things that Phelps did before they say those things.

A true sportsman would appreciate and recognize that it takes special skills to be truly great in whatever sport.

Enjoy!

PS: To the poster than mentioned swimming is the 'only sport where there are so many different events that would be winnable by a single person':

The truth is:

It takes a very specialized athlete to win any ONE of the events Phelps won. They are a lot more different than an uneducated sportsman would know. The only two races that are even close to each other are the 50-100 free, and even these aren't that close because the dead 50 free athlete doesn't rely much on a strict training regiment.

Michael Phelps is truly a once in a lifetime athlete and it's not fair to compare Osain Bolt to him because Bolt is so one dimensional compared to Phelps it's not really a comparison at all.

Enjoy!

Answer 2

It is hard to tell because swim is the only sport where there are so many different events that would be winnable by a single person.

Answer 3

I would say it is still too early to call him the greatest since he's not done filling up his trophy case; but definitely great.  

Not to take anything away from Phelp's 8 gold medals, but 3 of those medals came from relays, with one being an epic finish from Aaron Piersol.  

I think it is neat Speedo is paying out a $1 MILL bonus to Phelps for getting 8 Golds.  Maybe he should give three-eights of that money to his swim buddies, especially since he'll be a billionare when he breaks another world record pretty soon: Most Television ads showcasing a popular athlete (currently held by Peyton Manning...).

Answer 4

Yes I love him not only is he a terrific swimmer but he has the best personality his character is MAJOR!

I love everything about him hes the BEST!!!

Answer 5

No, because it's quite more complicated to compare swimming vs. running. One's on land and the other obviously in the water. It's impossible to compare apples and oranges, because they're not the same things. Yes, Michael Phelps is the greatest swimmer, but Bolt on the other hand is the greatest sprinter. I think it's unfair to make comparisons.

Furthermore, i disagree with Mark, because it's impossible for an athlete to run all those races he pointed out, that's why they compete in their specialty events.