Michael Phelps - The Greatest Olympian of All-Time.
Hello, everyone how are you? Hope you all and your family, friends etc are well and good. It has been a long since I write. Today I feel something to write upon. Hence I choose to be write on my favourite athlete. I recently go through his Biography on YouTube and i feel necessarily after watching his biography to write down about him. He inspire millions of peoples across the globe with his game and as human being too. In this blog I focus on the things about which he speaks, which can be fruitful in our life if we implement them. Here in this blog I had collect the statistical and factual information from several sources. This blog is quite longer but it will be worth your time.
Skill Development Expert Profile — Michael Phelps
Michael Phelps is the most decorated Olympic athlete of all time. It’s not even close. Phelps has 28 medals, 23 of them gold. The next athlete on the list, gymnast Larissa Latynina has 18 medals, including nine gold.
In the 2008 Beijing Olympics alone, Phelps won eight gold medals. In the 2004 games in Athens, he won six gold and two bronze medals. In the 2012 Olympics in London, he won four gold and two silver, and at the 2016 Rio Olympics, he won five gold and one silver. This makes him the most successful athlete in four Olympics in a row.
Starting out
Michael began swimming with his sisters when he was seven. As he was a little scared to put his head underwater, he started with the backstroke. From a modest start, he quickly got the hang of things and improved fast.
He was only 15 years old when he entered his first Olympics and achieved a respectable fifth place in the 200-meter butterfly. At 15 years and nine months, he became the youngest male swimmer to break a world-record, also on the 200-meter butterfly. Throughout his career, he set 39 world-records, more than any other swimmer.
Having a dream
“You have to have a dream so that you can get up in the morning.” — Michael Phelps.
Michael decided early on that he wanted to become a professional athlete, winning gold medals and competing in championships. He looked up to his older sisters and swimmers in his club who were winning races and decided that he would love to do this as well.
He picked up habits from more accomplished swimmers and copied their training and behaviour. Phelps believed that the more you dream, the more you can achieve and that there were no specific limits to what you can achieve. When the successful Australian swimmer Ian Thorpe said he thought it would be impossible for Phelps to beat Mark Spitz’ record of winning seven gold in one Olympics, Thorpe replied that it might be impossible in Thorpe’s mind, but not in his.
Believe that anything is possible
“So many people along the way, whatever it is you aspire to do, will tell you it can’t be done. But all it takes is imagination. You dream. You plan. You reach. There will be obstacles. There will be doubters. There will be mistakes. But with hard work, with belief, with confidence and trust in yourself and those around you, there are no limits.” — Michael Phelps
The belief that you can achieve something is essential to motivate yourself to put in the necessary effort. The practice required is so challenging that it can be difficult to get up in the morning unless you think you will reach your goals.
Michael has a mindset of having no set limit to what’s possible. He believes records can be broken, and that it’s always possible to do things slightly better. Even when you’re the best in the world, it’s possible to improve and to continue to search for ways to become better — it’s the only way to succeed and stay at the top. Four years after retiring, Phelps only has one individual world-record left, on the 400-meter medley. Records keep getting broken.
“You can’t put a limit to anything. The more you dream, the farther you get.” — Michael Phelps
Commitment
“If you want to be the best, you have to do things that other people aren’t willing to do.” — Michael Phelps
Michael Phelps made a lot of sacrifices growing up, but this was also what made it possible for him to live a remarkable life. As he was always working out, it meant that he had to say no to most social activities like going to a dance or hanging out with friends. He had swimming practice early every morning, and he needed to rest to perform well.
Getting up at five o’clock every morning to jump in the cold pool was not something Phelps loved. But he was willing to do it anyway, in his quest to reach his ambitious goals. He was willing to stay longer in the gym, push a bit harder and do more practice sessions than his competitors. Over time, this adds up, and the difference in performance becomes astonishing. Eventually, it looked like he’s from a different planet. But mainly he was willing to do what other people aren’t willing to do.
Mental toughness
When feel tired, I just think about how great I will feel, once I finally reach my goal.” — Michael Phelps
Mental toughness is what separates the good from the great. The ability to go through a gruelling practice regime and push yourself to the limits, day in and day out. At some point in your career, you will meet competitors that are equally talented and hard-working. Then mental toughness becomes the deciding factor that separates the winners from the next positions. The difference between winning and coming in fifth can be tiny, but Phelps nearly always managed to come out on top.
Phelps had a willingness to push himself through incredibly tough practice sessions, for longer hours than most of his competitors. He taught himself to forget about the momentary pain and instead focus on how great he would feel the day he would reach his goals.
Eat, sleep and swim
Before the Beijing Olympics, that’s all his life consisted off. He had to take in 8000–10 000 calories daily, to keep up with his five hours a day, six days a week practice schedule. Phelps was a man on a mission, with no other activities than eating, sleeping and swimming.
If you want to achieve something great, this type of intense focus and dedication to your goals is what’s required to get there. Phelps didn’t disappoint and came back with eight gold medals, the most won by any athlete in the Olympics.
It’s what you do in the dark, that puts you in the light.
Perfect body for swimming
Phelps has the perfect body for swimming. He has a long torso and relatively shorter legs. He has the torso of someone who is 10 centimetres taller and the legs of someone who would typically be 20 centimetres shorter.
He is 193 centimetres tall, with a disproportionate long wingspan of 203 centimetres. The wingspan is the distance from fingertip to fingertip when you hold your arms out to the sides. The average person’s wingspan is about the same as their height. This matters when reaching for the finish line, where the difference between gold and fourth place can be as little as a tenth of a second.
The disproportionately large chest and long arms make it possible to get more power in the water, and the shorter legs result in less water resistance with each stroke.
His feet are also unique. Like many top swimmers, Phelps has hyperextended joints. But his ankles bend 15 per cent more than his competitors. In combination with a shoe size of 14, his feet act like flippers propelling him through the water.
Michael Phelps also has huge hands, which function as great paddles.
Additionally, researches have found that Phelps produces half the lactic acid of his competitors. This means he can recover quicker between races and practice sessions, which gives him the opportunity to practice more with high intensity and perform at his highest level with shorter breaks. Altogether, Michael was born with a potential to become a great swimmer.
Technique
“I can only control my own performance. If I do my best, then I can feel good at the end of the day.” — Michael Phelps
Phelps has perfected his swimming technique and dedicated himself to improve every element of his performance. Although he has a perfect swimming body, that’s not enough to become a champion. Several other top swimmers have similar bodies to Phelps. Against almost any other person he would have a considerable advantage, but less so compared with those he competes against.
Having the right body only makes it possible to become a champion, but potential does not equal reality. It was Michaels’ extreme will to perfect his performance and succeed that has driven him to become the greatest Olympian of all time.
Take home message
- Michael Phelps is the greatest Olympian of all time, winning 28 medals, including 23 gold.
- From an early age, he set ambitious goals and dreamt of winning gold-medals.
- Phelps believed anything was possible, which supported his commitment to practice with high dedication.
- He developed his mental toughness and was able to push away the pain and instead focus on how great he would feel when he reached his goals.
- For long periods of life, Michael focused exclusively on becoming the best swimmer he could be, leaving no time for other activities.
- Phelps has an ideal body for swimming, with a long torso and arms and shorter legs.
- He committed himself to perfect his swimming technique and improve every element of his performance.
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