“We’re a Little Phelps’d Out”: Despite Winning Five Golds, Michael Phelps Lost an Out of Pool Battle to Fellow American Swimmer at Rio Olympics

Michael Phelps is considered the greatest swimmer of all time with an unbeatable medal record in the Olympics. His life is nothing short of a thriller movie where on one side he broke all the records and established a legendary status in the sport and on the other side, he struggled with multiple issues.

Michael Phelps is famous for his discipline while he was training for the Olympics. He trained for five years straight without a day off. His prowess was such that whenever he stepped into the pool, everybody in the stadium would expect a record-breaking performance.

Michael Phelps lost to a rival

Ever since winning his first Olympic medal at the Athens Olympics in 2004, Michael Phelps has never looked back. Putting forward incredible performances over the span of multiple years, he became a legend in the sport. Throughout his career, only a few of his contemporaries could overpower him in any category, even outside the pool.

Bob Dorfman, the executive creative director of Baker Street Advertising, spoke to the NY Times, and revealed that there was one swimmer who beat Phelps in his appeal to the audience. “We’re a little Phelps’d out,” he said. Describing Ryan’s appeal, Bob said, “As a brand, Mr. Lochte’s appeal is ‘through the roof.'”

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He revealed how Ryan beat Michael in that category, certainly despite winning five gold medals. Adding about Ryan Lochte, Bob said, “He has potential for winning golds, and then just the fact that he’s so damn good-looking. If he can’t beat Michael Phelps in anything else, he can beat him in that category,” he said.

Ryan Lochte and Michael’s relationship

Ryan and Michael were great competitors on the field. Their aura was such that the fans always expected a thrilling race when they competed against each other. They were fierce rivals and have known each other since 2004.

Ryan competed against Michael at the Athens Olympics in 2004. Both the rivals competed in the United States Swimming team right from Athens to Beijing to London and in the Rio Olympics together.

However, they had a little fallout during the Rio Olympics in 2016. It was due to an incident Lochte was a part of during the Rio Olympics. Ryan made international headlines after his shenanigans in Brazil.

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In an interview with USA TODAY, he revealed that he tried to get in touch with Phelps post the incident, but Michael did not respond to his text message.