Swimming: Fly failure spurs Phelps

CHARLOTTE: Michael Phelps arrived at the Charlotte UltraSwim still stinging from his 200m butterfly defeat in Michigan last month.

The 14-time Olympic gold medallist finished fourth in the race in Ann Arbor won by China’s Wu Peng, Phelps’ first defeat in the event since the 2002 Pan Pacific Championships.

“It was obviously frustrating, because the streak was something I wanted to keep going my entire career,” said Phelps.

“I’ve used it as motivation.”

Phelps has acknowledged that lackadaisical training had contributed to some sub-par performances since he swept all before him at the 2008 Beijing Olympics.



Published in The Express Tribune, May 14^th, 2011.