Michael Phelps Filled With Rage Was Ready to Call-Off Retirement After 7-Time Olympic Gold Medalist Threatened His World Records

Published 07/30/2022, 10:15 AM EDT

No matter how great of an athlete you are, records and accolades always hold sentimental value. Hence, when swimming legend Michael Phelps lost his 18 years old world record to fellow countryman Caeleb Dressel, he considered unretiring for a moment.

The feeling of envy was evident because it was the first time since 2001 that the Baltimore Bullet didn’t hold the 100m butterfly world record. Therefore, when he heard the news, he texted coach Bob Bowman about reconsidering his retirement.

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Michael Phelps was not happy when Caeleb Dressel broke his world record

First, 19-year-old Kristof Milak of Hungary broke Michael Phelps‘ record in the 200m butterfly, and a week later, it was Caeleb Dressel shattering his 100m butterfly record. Perhaps losing two consecutive world titles within a short period might have had a heavy toll on the swimming legend’s heart. Therefore, the first thing he did after he heard the news was text his coach, Bowman.

He recalls, “I sent Bob a text after the 100 fly record was broken that said, I swear to God, if my 400 I.M. record gets broken, I’ll meet you in Colorado Springs for training.” If that is the only thing keeping Phelps away from the sport, maybe the fans would pray that someone breaks his 400 I. M record soon too. Although he has achieved everything he set his mind to, a comeback now would be a tough decision to make.

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The record was in Phelps’ family for years

Perhaps the reason Michael Phelps was so sentimental about the 100m butterfly is that his family held the record for years. He said, “before I came along, it was my sister Whitney’s event. So it runs deeper than just saying, “This is my record.” That stroke has been in the Phelps family for a long time.”

Well, since his sisters were pros at the butterfly stroke, it came naturally to him as well. However, that’s how it works. Time doesn’t care about emotion or sentimental values. No matter how great you are at something, someday someone better will come and break those records which were once thought to be unbreakable.

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Written by:

Saurav Panwar is a US Sports writer at EssentiallySports. A postgraduate in Media and Communication Studies, he shares a profound love for creative direction and filmmaking. Saurav is also an avid reader and a literature devotee whose fandom spreads from classics to sci-fi, non-fiction, plays, comics, and much more.

Edited by:

Simar Singh Wadhwa

Michael Phelps Filled With Rage Was Ready to Call-Off Retirement After 7-Time Olympic Gold Medalist Threatened His World Records

Michael Phelps was not happy when Caeleb Dressel broke his world record

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The record was in Phelps’ family for years