“Getting the free t-shirts, free gears” – When Michael Phelps talked about the ‘excitement’ of joining the national team
The world of swimming is incomplete without stalwarts like Michael Phelps. With a total of 28 Olympic medals, the former American competitive swimmer is the most decorated Olympian of all time. He won a whopping eight medals (six golds and two bronzes) at the first ever Olympics (2004 Summer Olympics; Athens) he took part in.
Despite his numerous achievements, he was not bestowed the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the highest civilian honor in the United States of America, which caused quite a bit of outcry on social media platforms this year.
Here’s a throwback to when Michael Phelps talked about his introduction to the national team, his inspiration behind it, and more.
Michael Phelps and his inspiration behind joining the national swimming team
In an interview with USA Swimming right after the 2016 Summer Olympics, Michael Phelps commented on how his sisters inspired him to join the national swimming team and take part in major competitions. He expressed how he wanted to be a part of tournaments and travel around the world:
“I have two elder sisters that I look up to and for them I had the chance to travel nationally and internationally. Whitney was on the national team with people I looked up to and she always used to come back with autographs. I wanted to do that. I wanted to be a part of these teams and travel the world.”
Michael Phelps talked about how he aimed high and wanted to be an Olympian from the get-go. He said:
“At that point I just wanted to become an Olympic gold medalist, break the records, and wanted to be a professional athlete.”
Speaking about his very first national team, the American swimmer revealed how the Olympics was his first experience at being part of a national team. He said:
“My first national team was for the Olympics, it’s as big as you can get. Just having that experience, and getting the free t-shirts and free gear, everything you can possibly imagine, they handed it to you.”
Needless to say, Michael Phelps holds the Olympics as the biggest achievement when it comes to swimming and he clearly expressed the following:
“Once an Olympian, always an Olympian. That’s as big as you can get in the sport.”
Here are all the Olympic medals won by Michael Phelps over the course of his career:
2004 Athens Olympics
- 100 Metres Butterfly – Gold
- 200 Metres Butterfly – Gold
- 200 Metres Freestyle – Bronze
- 200 Metres Medley – Gold
- 400 Metres Medley – Gold
- 4 x 100 Metres Freestyle – Bronze
- 4 x 200 Metres Freestyle – Gold
- 4 x 100 Metres Medley – Gold
2008 Beijing Olympics
- 200 Metres Freestyle – Gold
- 100 Metres Butterfly – Gold
- 200 Metres Butterfly – Gold
- 200 Metres Medley – Gold
- 400 Metres Medley – Gold
- 4 x 100 Metres Freestyle – Gold
- 4 x 200 Metres Freestyle – Gold
- 4 x 100 Metres Medley – Gold
2012 London Olympics
- 100 Metres Butterfly – Gold
- 200 Metres Butterfly – Silver
- 200 Metres Medley – Gold
- 4 x 100 Metres Freestyle – Silver
- 4 x 200 Metres Freestyle – Gold
- 4 x 100 Metres Medley – Gold
2016 Rio Olympics
- 100 Metres Butterfly – Silver
- 200 Metres Butterfly – Gold
- 200 Metres Medley – Gold
- 4 x 200 Metres Freestyle – Gold
- 4 x 100 Metres Freestyle – Gold
- 4 x 100 Metres Medley – Gold