Phelps Takes Another Loss in Charlotte

(NEWSER) - Michael Phelps has proven he can be all too human outside the pool, and now there's proof he can be human inside it as well. The Olympic star lost his first race in a year tonight when Aaron Peirsol of California beat him in the backstroke at the Charlotte Grand Prix, reports Reuters. It's actually not a huge shock: Phelps didn't compete in the backstroke at the Olympics, where Peirsol took the gold. More»

(AP) - Sporting a goatee and an old-school swimsuit, Michael Phelps picked up right where he left off in Beijing. Two races. Two wins. The world's greatest swimmer left a 9-month layoff and marijuana travails in his wake tonight at his first meet since a triumphant Olympics. None of it seemed to matter when Phelps dove in for two events less than an hour apart at the Charlotte UltraSwim in Charlotte, NC. More»

He fails to qualify in two events, barely makes a third

(AP) - Wearing an old-style swimsuit, Michael Phelps missed out on two finals and barely qualified for a third today at a World Cup short-course meet. Phelps failed to qualify for the finals of the 100-meter freestyle and 100 backstroke. He qualified in the 100 medley, finishing seventh in 53.13 seconds. He'll try two more events tomorrow. More»

Swimmer challenges others to switch before ban takes effect

(NEWSER) - Michael Phelps challenged his competitors at the upcoming FINA/Arena World Cup meets to race without the full-body technical suits recently banned by swimming authorities for providing an unfair advantage in speed. The ban doesn’t go into effect until January, but Phelps said he was “getting ready for where the sport is going,” by switching early to a waist-to-knee “jammer.” More»

(AP) - Michael Phelps and the US 400-meter medley relay team closed the fastest meet in swimming history with an appropriate finish Sunday night in Rome—the 43rd world record. Phelps earned his fifth gold medal of a world championship that showed he's still got plenty of motivation, even after scoring a record eight golds at the Beijing Olympics. More»