Michael Phelps earns 23rd career Olympic medal with 4x100m freestyle relay squad

His split time was a strong 47.12. Vladimir Morozov, initially banned from the Olympics, was one of Russia’s relay swimmers.

Phelps won gold with the 4x100m freestyle relay in the 2004 and 2008 Olympics as well as a silver with the US men at the 2012 Games.

Phelps won the 100m and 200m butterfly and 200m medley at last month’s U.S. trials, but not with the sort of sizzling times that would make the rest of the world sit up and take notice.

He retired after London before coming back for these Olympics. “The Australians made a significant charge over the past couple of years with their men’s and women’s teams combined”.

Time to make room for gold No. 19. At the Athens Olympics in 2004, it was the South African squad that wore the olive branch crowns and gold medals. At the end of it, medals are to be awarded for the in the women’s 52 kg and men’s 66 kg weight classes.

But his seventh gold in Beijing came by the narrowest of margins, in a scintillating duel with Milorad Cavic – the tough-talking Serbian who said he’d like to go down in history as “some guy” who spoiled Phelps’s eight-gold bid. Japan was next-closest in London, bagging 11 medals, though zero were gold.

Women and men compete for medals in the lightweight divisions (57kg and 73kg, respectively), with bouts taking place through the day. He has become a true leader of the USA swimming team, mentoring younger athletes and eagerly embracing the chance to be a role model.

At that games, Indigenous athlete Michael Ah Matt represented Australia in men’s basketball, while Adrian Blair and Francis Roberts competed in boxing.

Ledecky already picked up her first medal of the games, anchoring the women’s 4×100 free relay to a silver-medal finish behind Australia on Saturday.

“The women are going to do well with Katie Ledecky, everybody’s got their hopes pinned on that she’ll win the 200, 400 and 800 free”.

Track star Cathy Freeman remains our only Indigenous gold medal victor in an individual event, which she famously accomplished in the 400-metres at the Sydney 2000 Games.