You may have missed this information if you weren't playing very close attention to the Olympics. But it seems we have a swimmer that won a bunch of gold medals. Here are some links if you want to read more:
Link #1 Link #2 Link #3 Link #4 Link #5 Link #6 Link #7 Link #8 Link #9 Link #10 Link #11 Link #12 Link #13 Link #14 Link #15 Link #16 Link #17 Link #18 Link #19 Link #20 Link #21 Link #22 Link #23 Link #24 Link #25 Link #26 Link #27 Link #28 Link #29 Link #30 Link #31 Link #32 Link #33 Link #34
THAT'S ALL FROM ONE WEBSITE. And there were plenty more. I only provided links available on their front page and on their front Phelps page.
Yes, I think it's overblown. I consider three of his gold medals from these games to have been won in legitimate events, the freestyle events. Anything involving other strokes has always been, to me, just a way to hand out more medals. A race should be based on who can get from here to there the fastest. Maybe Carl Lewis would have won more gold medals if he had a shot at a 200-meter backwards dash, etc. Hey, all these events are competed at the Olympics and he won them, so good for him. But greatest Olympian ever? Get real. He's the best swimmer ever. You can't compare across competitions precisely because of the different number of events.
My favorite link out of those is #18. NBC is apparently worried about the Olympic ratings "post-Phelps". Really? Perhaps if your network had devoted even a little time to hyping other people and events then the general public might be interested in those events. Just a thought. It should be noted, however, that the actual story pays proper respect to Michael Phelps, focusing more on how his Holiness has given the ratings a huge boost.
For a challenge, try getting through the slobfest that is the last link by Forde. Michael Phelps single-handedly saved the Olympics. Good grief, what an embarrassment, Pat. Just go ahead and write a story about how you have no historical perspective of the Olympics whatsoever and save everyone some time. My biggest concern at this point is having to see Forde work Phelps references into half his college football pieces this fall.
Look, the guy is a badass swimmer. We get it. But I never thought I'd see the day when a story about Brett Favre would be a welcome relief.