Coughlin Gives Up, Regains World Record

1972 Olympic champ stays gracious after record falls to Phelps

(NEWSER) - Outspoken and prickly in the best of times, Mark Spitz is slowly adjusting to being the second-greatest Olympian of all time, the Wall Street Journal reports. Mustering a little grace for the occasion, Spitz says he's relieved at the downgrade. "He's got the burden of inspiring the youth as they go forward," Spitz says. "That is a relief." More»

Swimmer inspired America to love the games again

(NEWSER) - If the Chinese invented organized sports 6,000 years ago, writes Pat Forde on ESPN.com, then how appropriate that Michael Phelps came to Beijing to prove he was “the apotheosis of the athlete.” And America knows it. In a year when the Olympics had become “passe,” tens of millions of enthusiastic Americans rooted for Phelps in a way not seen since the Miracle on Ice. He “single-handedly saved the Olympics,” Forde writes. More»

Cascade of new world records sparks debate

(NEWSER) - Swimming world records are going under so fast at this Olympics that some officials are questioning what's going on, the New York Times writes. Ten records have fallen in Beijing so far—four in the space of 80 minutes yesterday—causing controversy over concerns that advances in swimsuit and pool technology might deserve as much credit as the athletes. More»

(NEWSER) - At 23, Michael Phelps is poised to win the most gold medals ever by an individual at the Beijing Games, and earn some $5 million in endorsement deals for companies such as Visa and Speedo. Yet Phelps’ journey—from an 8-year-old throwing a temper tantrum after his first swimming loss to arguably the best swimmer of all time—has been a slow maturation, reports the Baltimore Sun. More»

(NEWSER) - Records fell at the Olympic trials in Omaha yesterday as both Michael Phelps and Katie Hoff triumphed in the 400 IM, USA Today reports. Each swimmer had a personal motivation: Phelps took almost a second of his own world record, and Hoff recaptured the record from Stephanie Rice. More»