Make room for Phelps as winningest Olympian ever

BEIJING (AP)—Michael Phelps etched his name with Mark Spitz and Carl Lewis among the winningest Olympians ever Tuesday. With three gold medals and three world records, he has no equal in China.In winning the 200-meter freestyle, Phelps ran his career Olympic total to nine golds and avenged his only individual loss in Athens four years ago, when a 19-year-old Phelps took on the 200 free just so he could compete with Ian Thorpe and Pieter van den Hoogenband. He touched third that night in what was called the “Race of the Century.” This time, it was hardly a race at all. It was all Phelps.Racing out of lane six, he quickly surged to the lead and led by a full body length halfway through the second of four laps. Phelps was nearly two seconds ahead of the field when he touched in 1 minute, 42.96 seconds, breaking the mark of 1:43.86 he set at last year’s world championships.“That’s great,” said Phelps, who was much more reserved in his celebration after a wild performance on deck the previous day. “I just wanted to be out at the 50-meter point, and that’s where I was. I was in open water, and it was difficult for the other guys to see me.”South Korea’s Park Tae-hwan took the silver in 1:44.85, touching while Phelps was already looking at the scoreboard. Peter Vanderkaay, one of Phelps’ training partners, gave the U.S. another medal by claiming the bronze in 1:45.14. SOURCE:YAHOOSPORTS.COM