“That Was a Fun One”- After 14-Years Michael Phelps Recalls Nerve-Wracking Race That Nearly Cost Him Eight Gold Medals Dream

For nearly two long decades, Michael Phelps made his way to everyone’s lips. He dominated every event he competed in, and often other swimmers resorted to second place. Moreover, the 2008 Beijing Olympics cemented his place as one of the greatest Olympians of all time as he won eight gold medals. But, the path to success was difficult. One event, in particular, saw him on the verge of losing his dream.

The men’s 4x100m freestyle competition had a lot of drama to showcase. The race was so tight that the team triumphed after USA’s Jason Lezak torpedoed to the finishing line. It was an iconic moment. Phelps posted the video on Twitter, reminiscing the sensational race.

Michael Phelps still loves that epic race!

The relay race saw Michael Phelps competing with Garrett Weber-Gale, Cullen Jones, and Jason Lezak. To everyone’s surprise, Phelps finished second in his split and the third fastest time to set for the team in the relay. As the race got to its business end, France led the way until the last 50-meters. After this, Lezak changed his gears and charged his boosters to lead a grandstand finish.

He swam a split of 46.06 seconds, which unsurprisingly remains the fastest ever split in the race. Fans consider this to be the most remarkable comeback in swimming history. Helping Phelps to keep his dream alive, Lezak deserves credit for the way he managed the race. Hence, filled with nostalgia, the event happened 14 years ago, and Phelps posted a tweet captioning, “That was a fun one.”

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It could have been the race where the course of history remained unchanged. For Phelps, Lezak gave him the biggest motivation to grab his eighth gold medal in his final race.

Acknowledging Jason Lezak

In his remarkable career, Lezak won four gold, two silver, and two bronze medals in his career. But, this was the best swim he ever produced. Nobody could take that away from him, not even Phelps, as he gave his appreciation to Lezak.

“You could tell the excitement and the kind of emotion that was on my face after that race. You know how excited we were to win that race and how excited we were to come back like that. He is one of the greatest relay swimmers of all time,” said Phelps.

Who knows if Lezak finished second? The dream of eight gold medals would have gone to the trash can. However, dreams do come true! Although Michael Phelps deserves all the plaudits for his performance, the swimming fraternity understands Jason Lezak’s contributions to that moment. Underrated!

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