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Phelps wins Lochte, stock, barrel
RIO DE JANEIRO: Michael Phelps waggled four fingers, recognising another historic achievement.
RIO DE JANEIRO: Michael Phelps waggled four fingers, recognising another historic achievement.
Now, he’s the first swimmer ever to win the same event at four straight Olympics. Ryan Lochte was left in his wake every time.
In what was billed as the final showdown between two of America’s greatest swimmers, Phelps blew away Lochte ‘and everyone else’ to win his fourth gold medal of the Rio Olympics and 22nd overall with a victory in the 200-metre individual medley Thursday night.
Phelps finished a full body-length ahead of the field after dominating the breaststroke and freestyle legs, finishing in 1 minute, 54.66 seconds.
He’s got 13 individual golds and 26 medals overall. “I don’t know how to wrap my head around that,” Phelps said.
“It’s been a hell of a career.” That’s an understatement.
A 12-time Olympic medalist, Lochte had settled for two silvers and a bronze behind Phelps at the last three Olympics in this event.
This time, he didn’t even make the podium. Leading at the midway point, Lochte faded to fifth, nearly 3 seconds behind the winner.
“We bring out the best in each other,” he said. “I was a little bummed about my performance, but I was happy for him to get a gold and get one for Team USA.” Japan’s Kosuke Hagino took the silver, while China’s Wang Shun claimed the bronze. But Phelps was in a league of his own. As usual.
NOT OVER FOR LOCHTE
Ryan Lochte’s last individual event at the Rio de Janeiro Games, and possibly of his Olympics career, did not end the way he wanted to.
Whether it is enough motivation to push his body for a further four years through to the Tokyo Games in 2020 only remains to be seen. “I can’t say this is over. If anything, that race, it helped motivate me,” the 32-year-old Lochte said. “There’s a lot of things that I need to change in the next four years if I want to come back.”
Lochte’s performance at Rio was far from the heights he would have expected, particularly given it was his only individual event at his fourth Olympics.
