The sporting feud between the legendary Michael Phelps and his swimming rival, Chad le Clos first sparked in 2012. By beating the Flying Fish to the wall, the South African swimmer bagged his first gold medal and took the spotlight in the 2012 London Olympics. Three years later, the African swimmer and the Baltimore Bullet engaged in a verbal spat over a swimming category. However, to end the discord, Phelps’s swimming nemesis refused to “fire back” and shared his outlook on their wrangle.

In 2015, while engaging in a back-and-forth verbal dispute, Chad told Phelps that he “can keep quiet now.” However, a couple of days later, the South African affirmed to the media that he was misinterpreted. Nevertheless, le Clos also shared his perspective on their feud. Let’s take a look.

Chad le Clos once cleared the air around his feud with Michael Phelps

In 2015, le Clos appeared in an interview with Sports 360. He profoundly talked about the misinterpretation of his words by the media. Clearing the air around his statement, the South African stated, “Firstly you must listen to what I’m saying, I didn’t slate you”. He further added, “I’ve always said he’s the greatest of all time, I don’t take that away from him”.

Moreover, le Clos idolized Phelps for his swimming prowess as he said, “he’s my idol”. However, fickling his statement, the African asserted, “Maybe not…I look up to him in swimming terms, that’s it”. 

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However, Clos’s clarification didn’t give an end to the feud right there. The rivalry was dragged to the 2016 Rio Olympics. But, this time Phelps ruled the arena by winning the gold medal by trouncing his African rival.

What happened at Rio Olympics?

Phelps and le Clos met once again in Rio. Howbeit, Phelps had an upper hand over his nemesis. By beating le Clos in preliminaries and finals, the Baltimore Bullet ruled the reverent arena. Plus, Phelps announced his retirement with the dazzling gold in his hand. Forthwith the Olympics, fans and fanatics got the license to flock to the internet with memes. 

Well, the athletic universe is filled with tough crowds. What do you feel about Phelps and De Clos’s 4 year-long rivalry? Let us know in the comment section below.

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