Phelps Following the Woods Route

By John Lohn

CRANBURY, New Jersey, May 11. THE great ones never sit back, content with the past. They don't sit at a table and shine their Olympic medals. No, the sparkle they seek is located in elevating their greatness to another level. So, when Michael Phelps returns to competition this weekend at the Charlotte UltraSwim, the man who has won 14 Olympic gold medals, the famed eight at last summer's Games in Beijing, will bring a different look to the pool.

A couple of weeks after hinting that his stroke would be tweaked in Charlotte, Phelps confirmed last week, during an Associated Press interview, that he and coach Bob Bowman have been fine-tuning a windmill stroke for the freestyle events. How will it work out? Well, we'll get an early idea pretty darn soon.

Phelps' participation at the UltraSwim will be his first competitive foray since he made Olympic history at the Water Cube, his fingernail triumph over Michael Cavic and Jason Lezak's come-from-behind anchor leg in the 400 freestyle relay among the highlights. Phelps' races in Charlotte will also be his first since USA Swimming imposed a three-month suspension in reaction to the photos released of Phelps inhaling from a marijuana pipe.

Phelps is scheduled to contest five events in his competitive return, the 50, 100 and 200 freestyles, along with the 100 backstroke and 100 butterfly. The 100 back might be the most intriguing from a field standpoint, given that Aaron Peirsol, Ryan Lochte and Nick Thoman are all entered in the event. However, the freestyle events will garner as much attention, if not more, due to Phelps' decision to alter his stroke.

For a moment, let's go back a little more than a decade to the 1997 Masters at Augusta National Club. Over four days, Tiger Woods blitzed the field, securing his first Green Jacket with a 12-stroke slaughter of the field. Yet, the swing Woods used to capture his first major championship is nothing like the swing Woods employs today. Simply, Woods decided that some technical tweaks were necessary to become a better player, even if he was already the premier golfer on the planet.

Phelps is in a similar situation. He doesn't have to swim another race in his life and he'll be considered the most dominant swimmer of all-time, and the finest Olympian to ever compete. He could also go on with the same freestyle stroke he's known under coach Bob Bowman for years and continue to set records, as has been the case in the 200 freestyle.

But Phelps is one of the great ones and Bowman is a mastermind, so the duo sat down and apparently put together a blueprint that will enable Phelps to excel even greater in the freestyle, particularly over the 100 distance. There's no mystery that Phelps, who owns the American record, is targeting the event as part of his future repertoire. To push the likes of Alain Bernard and Eamon Sullivan, among others, for the No. 1 spot in the world, Phelps and Bowman played the roles of mechanics.

Whatever Phelps has touched during his career has turned to gold – literally. And while his new freestyle approach has yet to be witnessed by the swimming public, it would be foolish to think it will generate anything but positive results. After all, Bowman has guided Phelps before his teenage years and every decision that's been made has paid off with major royalties.

There surely will be ample questions posed to Phelps in Charlotte about his suspension and his decision that led to the marijuana pipe photos. Hopefully, more focus is placed on Phelps' decision to tinker with his stroke in attempt to heighten his greatness. Credit is deserved for that willingness.

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