One all-time athlete paid tribute to another recently, as Iowa women’s basketball star Caitlin Clark revealed her phone screensaver is of swimming legend Michael Phelps.
During a “get to know you” video posted by Iowa, Clark revealed that her phone screensaver is a photo of Phelps swimming in the Olympics in 2016.
Once Phelps saw that he was Clark’s screensaver, he shared on social media that he was honored to be represented in such a way. “This is so cool!” Phelps shared on Wednesday as he tagged Clark in the post.
How cool indeed, as two sports legends collide in a really neat encounter.
Katie Ledecky has once again made swimming history.
One of the most accomplished swimmers in the history of the sport has further strengthened her all-time status.
Swimmer Katie Ledecky earned her 16th career individual swimming world title in the 800-meter freestyle, one of her most best events, on Saturday in Japan, surpassing Michael Phelps’ record.
As all great athletes do, Ledecky said she still found a way she wanted to get better in this historic moment for her career and the sport.
“It was special,” Ledecky told NBC about Saturday’s win, which the news organization reported was the seventh-best time in history. “I’m happy with that swim. I wanted to be a little bit better [time-wise], but I’ll take it. I’m really pleased with how the week went.”
As NBC notes, she’ll still have next year’s Summer Olympics in France to add to her staggering win totals.
UNPRECEDENTED!
Katie Ledecky has broken Michael Phelps’s record with her 16th career individual swimming world title! 🥇pic.twitter.com/42xMTPrXLC
Ledecky is a monumental figure in the world of swimming, and Saturday’s accomplishment just further highlights why she’s such a dominant force for the U.S. in the sport.
Jon Rahm’s last start ended with disappointment. A rough final round at Torrey Pines led to a T-7 finish — a season-best outcome for many on the PGA Tour, but standards are different for the world No. 3.
He’s already in Arizona preparing for next week’s WM Phoenix Open, the first full-field designated event in Tour history. To claim his third win in four starts, Rahm will have to take down the likes of Rory McIlroy, Scottie Scheffler, Justin Thomas and pretty much any other big name you could think of.
How’s he getting the game dialed in? Oh, just playing alongside J.J. Watt, Tom Kim and arguably the greatest Olympian to ever live, Michael Phelps.
Match #1 – JJ 0 Rahmbo 1 I only had to give him 36 shots from the tips at TPC Scottsdale and he was not happy once he saw he would’ve won stroke play. One of the best rounds I have seen him play, love seeing his progress. Ready for Match #2 but only giving him 34 shots. 😉Vamos! pic.twitter.com/EGEPFqakKU
El internet está lleno de preguntas y situaciones hipotéticas extrañas que pueden tener a la gente halando y debatiendo por horas. Es lo que muchos hacen cuando tienen demasiado tiempo libre. Este parece ser el caso del rapero Young Thug quien está …
El internet está lleno de preguntas y situaciones hipotéticas extrañas que pueden tener a la gente halando y debatiendo por horas. Es lo que muchos hacen cuando tienen demasiado tiempo libre.
Y aparentemente, éste estaba pensando en natación. Específicamente, se estaba preguntando qué tan lejos puede un humano como Michael Phelps, nadar a la costa desde el medio del océano, así que tuiteó al GOAT de natación para conocer la respuesta.
(Cabe mencionar que es completamente posible que alguien más estaba usando la cuenta de Young Thug para preguntar.)
I'm talking with my roommate and we're wondering if you could swim 100 miles from the middle of the ocean back to shore – @MichaelPhelps 🏊♂️
Traducción.-Estoy hablando con mi compañero y nos estamos preguntando si podrías nadar 1000 millas desde el centro del oceao a la costa. @MichaelPhelps
Cien millas a la costa desde el medio del mar parece ser un reto horriblemente difícil, pero Phelps respondió que cree, de hecho, que podría llegar a tierra.
¿Pero que tanto tiempo le llevaría? Esa es otra historia, y como dijo Phelps, esta no sería una nadada divertida o placentera. Sería una misión agotadora con consecuencia nada buenas si sale mal.
Could YOU swim 100 miles from the middle of the ocean to shore?
The internet is filled with random hypothetical questions and situations that can have people talking and debating for hours sometimes. It’s what so many people do when they have a lot of time on their hands.
And apparently, he was recently thinking about swimming. Specifically, he was wondering how far a human, like Michael Phelps, could swim to shore from the middle of the ocean, so he tweeted at the swimming GOAT to get an answer.
(It’s worth noting that it’s entirely possible someone else used Young Thug’s account to ask this question.)
I'm talking with my roommate and we're wondering if you could swim 100 miles from the middle of the ocean back to shore – @MichaelPhelps 🏊♂️
One hundred miles from shore in the middle of the ocean seems like an awfully difficult challenge, but Phelps responded and said he does, in fact, think he could make it back to land.
But how long would it take? That’s a different story, and, as Phelps noted, this would not be a fun or enjoyable swim. This would be a grueling task with not great consequences if it goes poorly.
Michael Phelps delivers a powerful speech to Nick Saban’s Crimson Tide
Almost every single American will have Michael Phelps on their short list of greatest athletes ever.
Phelps made his first Olympic appearance in 2000 at only 15 years old. He took the world by storm at the 2008 Beijing Olympics when he erupted for eight gold medals, a feat that will likely never be accomplished again. In his career, Phelps captured 23 total gold medals.
This week, the Crimson Tide hosted Phelps in Tuscaloosa for a meeting with the team. Phelps delivered a powerful statement about accountability and resiliency. Phelps preaches his work ethic by saying, “From 2002 to 2008, guess how many days I took off? In those six years? None. Zero. Why? I wanted something that nobody else had the opportunity to get. I was willing to do more than anybody else on the face of the planet was willing to do. I got the results.”
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“Stuff like that is pretty cool. To have someone like that to reach out just to congratulate me is pretty special.”
Scottie Scheffler says becoming a Masters champion at age 25 is still just sinking in, but he’s experienced a few small perks along the way that have reminded him how cool it is to be the winner of the green jacket.
That included a handwritten letter from former U.S. President George W. Bush. Apparently 43’s handwriting was difficult for Scheffler to read.
“I hear he’s a good artist now. He’s got to do some work on his handwriting,” Scheffler said. “Stuff like that is pretty cool. To have someone like that to reach out just to congratulate me is pretty special. That’s probably kind of the only moments I’ve had where I kind of sit and reflect on what’s happened the past month and a half, two months. Obviously the Masters is such a different event than the rest of them. Just getting some messages like that from people I’ve looked up to for so long is really special.”
When Scheffler was asked to elaborate and name who sent some of the messages to him, he said, “I’m not really on social media. My wife has showed me a few things that people have posted, like Michael Phelps posted me in one of his stories, and then (Ezerkiel Elliott) from the Cowboys sent me a message. Just random stuff like that where I’m able to sit back – Michael Phelps is just insane. The guy is one of the greatest athletes ever. For him to reach out and post something about me or whatever is pretty cool.
“That’s kind of some of those moments where I’m able to sit back and kind of reflect on what happened and just be really grateful for it because stuff like that doesn’t come around too often. So it’s pretty special.”
Scheffler won the Masters on April 10, shooting a final-round 1-under 71, and beat Rory McIlroy by three strokes. In doing so, he became the fifth different world No. 1 player to leave Augusta National with a green jacket.
Jordan Spieth said his team “hammed and egged” it but there were plenty of good shots, plenty of good laughs.
OWINGS MILLS, Md. – The thermometer reached 95 on Wednesday, the long walk on mountainous Caves Valley Golf Club was on the arduous side, and the pro-am round ahead of the BMW Championship lasted more than five hours.
And Jordan Spieth had a blast.
“A lot of times when you have an 18-hole pro-am, you don’t know who you’re going to play with, and you’re somewhat kind of, not regretting the day, but more just kind of, OK, we’ve got to go out there and play 18, it’s going to be a long day, how do we save energy, that kind of stuff,” Spieth said. “But with this situation I was very excited.”
It helped to be grouped with Michael Phelps.
The most decorated Olympian of all time, the swimmer winning 23 gold medals among the 28 he collected in all, enjoyed the day, as well. The Baltimore native, who calls himself a “tremendous nerd of the golf game,” said it is “kind of sad, but I obsess about this game.”
So who better to have a round with than Spieth, right?
Spieth and Phelps have been associated with Under Armour for years. Also in the group with Spieth and Phelps was Kevin Plank, founder of Under Armour, whose headquarters are in Baltimore.
Spieth said his team “hammed and egged” it and had to yell “Fore,” more than a few times. But there were plenty of good shots, plenty of good laughs.
“When the pressure was most on, to no surprise Michael stepped up and hit his best shot of the day,” Spieth said. “Some of the shots he hit were not his best and then he’ll step up in that situation and put it to like eight feet and then knocked it right in the hole.”
Spieth and Phelps have done many photo shoots together through their years with Under Armour and built up a strong relationship. Phelps has been open about his mental health challenges, including depression, substance abuse and suicidal thoughts. He has now determined to help others from all walks of life deal with similar issues.
“I pick his brain on the mental side of things now,” Spieth said. “He’s getting very involved in mental health, and it’s been something that I’ve actually worked on a lot in the last few years, and that’s been a space that probably should be talked about more within athletes, their experiences across different sports, too.
Jordan Spieth and Michael Phelps played together in the BMW Championship pro-am on Wednesday, Aug. 25, 2021, at Caves Valley Golf Club in Owings Mills, Maryland. Photo by Julio Cortez/Associated Press
“I’ve been really fortunate that he’s lent an ear and bounced ideas off me. Without getting into details that are competitive advantages, I think he’s been a fantastic kind of friend, and we’ve been able to spend time down in Mexico separate from the brand, too, and get to know his family. To have a golf lover be the most decorated Olympian of all time, it’s really good for our sport, and it’s even better that I’m able to access it, as well.”
As for his current form, Spieth, thee three-time major winner who has emerged from a nearly three-year drought with nine top-10s in 17 starts so far this year, including his first win since the 2017 British Open coming in the Valero Texas Open, finished 73rd in the Northern Trust that ended Monday.
The 2015 winner of the FedEx Cup is seventh right now in the playoffs race heading into the BMW Championship. He’s ranked 12th in the world and eighth in the U.S. Ryder Cup standings. The top 6 at the end of the BMW automatically make the team and captain Steve Stricker will make six discretionary picks following next week’s Tour Championship.
“I feel good,” said Spieth, who has done some photo shoots at Caves Valley but said he doesn’t have much course knowledge. “This will be nice playing consecutive tournaments. I haven’t done that since Colonial to Memorial, so it’s been a long time. I always feel that I play better as kind of a stretch goes on, knock some rust off, figure it out just hitting more shots, less kind of practice shots at home and more shots on course.”
“We’re humans. We’re human beings. Nobody is perfect, so yes, it’s OK to not be OK.”
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Michael Phelps is the most decorated Olympian of all time and was hired by NBC to give his analysis on swimming at the Tokyo Olympics. But last night he offered his most important message of the Games and it had nothing to do with the sport in which he won 28 Olympic medals.
I could say a bunch of words about this but I think it’s better just to hear from Phelps himself. Over the past five years he’s been incredibly open with his mental health struggles and the work that he has done on himself and that openness has helped a lot of people.
“The Olympics are overwhelming. There’s a lot of emotions that go into it – I mean, I could talk to you about this for an hour.
“I think athletes, and Olympic athletes in general, talking about weight of gold – we need someone who we can trust. Somebody that can let us be ourselves and listen; allow us to become vulnerable. Somebody who is not going to try to fix us. We carry a lot of weight on our shoulders and it’s challenging – especially when we have the lights on us and all these expectations that are being thrown on top of us. It broke my heart but also if you look at it, mental health over the last 18 months is something that people are talking about.”
He continued by talking about the importance of asking for help.
“We’re humans. We’re human beings. Nobody is perfect, so yes, it’s OK to not be OK. It’s OK to go through ups and downs and emotional rollercoasters. But i think the biggest thing is we all need to ask for help sometimes, too, when we go through those times. For me, I can say personally it was something that was very challenging – it was hard for me to ask for help. I felt like i was carrying – as Simone said – the weight of the world on your shoulders. So yeah, it’s a tough situation.
“I hope this is an eye-opening experience. I really do. I hope this is an opportunity for us to jump on board and to even blow this mental health thing even more wide open. It is so much bigger than we can ever imagine. Look, for me when I started on this journey five years ago I knew it was big. I knew it was going to be challenging. Five years into it now – it’s even bigger than I can comprehend. So this is something that is going to take a lot of time, a lot of hard work, and people that are willing to help.”
He closed it by talking about his foundation and working with kids at a young age to teach them about the importance of mental health and asking for help when you need it.
“With the foundation it’s so important, especially to teach kids at a young age to take care of their physical and mental health. You guys hear me talking about that so much- if we’re not taking care of both, how are we ever expecting to be 100 percent.”
That was some very powerful stuff from Phelps and it was great to hear it from such a legend.
