{"id":136092,"date":"2015-06-12T14:00:31","date_gmt":"2015-06-12T21:00:31","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.swimmingworldmagazine.com\/news\/?p=136092"},"modified":"2015-06-12T08:03:28","modified_gmt":"2015-06-12T15:03:28","slug":"the-sinister-6-better-than-phelps","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.swimmingworldmagazine.com\/news\/the-sinister-6-better-than-phelps\/","title":{"rendered":"The Sinister 6: Better Than Phelps?"},"content":{"rendered":"

By Michael Grenon, Swimming World College Intern<\/em><\/p>\n

He’s a living legend; the greatest of all time.<\/span><\/p>\n

He\u2019s also human. <\/span><\/p>\n

Michael Phelps<\/strong> has been on the international swimming radar\u00a0for 15 years\u2014and he’s still racing. Nearly half his life ago, Phelps placed fifth in the 200 meter butterfly in his first Olympic Games. Twenty-two Olympic medals and countless front-page headlines later, even a summary of his athletic legacy would run (or swim) right off this page.<\/span><\/p>\n

But what about the swimmers who have individually beaten him at the biggest stage of the sport since his rise to the top? Not taking away from his medal-less Olympic debut when he was 15 years old, The Baltimore Bullet has been the highest medal-earning athlete in the most recent three Olympic Games in a row. In any sport. <\/span><\/p>\n

Incredibly, Phelps has not won the gold medal in only three of 14\u00a0individual Olympic performances since Athens, and failed to earn a medal in only one of the three, where he finished fourth.<\/span><\/p>\n

However, above Phelps’ Olympic legacy stand an elite few: six swimmers who have out-swum him head-to-head in the Olympics since Athens 11 years ago. Of course, all six are fairly well-known in the swimming community, and were already known when they topped the greatest of all time. As special as Phelps\u2019 gold medal individual performances were, these other six legends\u00a0each have their unique (and perhaps underrated) stories. <\/span><\/p>\n

The Sinister Six:<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

    \n
  1. Ian Thorpe<\/strong> \u2013 AUS\n
      \n
    • 5 individual freestyle Olympic medals spanning\u00a0Sydney 2000 and Athens 2004.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n
    • Pieter<\/strong> van den Hoogenband<\/strong> \u2013 NED\n
        \n
      • 5 individual freestyle Olympic medals spanning\u00a0Sydney 2000 and Athens 2004.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n
      • Ryan Lochte<\/strong> \u2013 USA\n
          \n
        • 7 individual backstroke\/IM Olympic medals spanning\u00a0Athens 2004 to London 2012.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n
        • Thiago Pereira<\/strong> \u2013 BRA\n
            \n
          • 1 individual IM Olympic medal in London 2012.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n
          • Kosuke Hagino<\/strong> \u2013 JPN\n
              \n
            • 1 individual IM Olympic medal in London 2012.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n
            • Chad le Clos<\/strong> \u2013 RSA\n
                \n
              • 2 individual butterfly Olympic medals in London 2012.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

                All six are Olympic medalists. All six represent different swimming nations. All six subverted\u00a0Phelps’ position\u00a0on the swimming world throne.<\/p>\n

                \n

                Athens 2004: Men\u2019s 200 Meter Freestyle Final<\/h2>\n[table \u201c\u201d not found \/]
                \n\n

                The\u00a0200 freestyle finals at Athens was considered “the race of the century” by many leading up to it. Just look at the big names in that final. Go ahead; look again.\u00a0Who you see<\/span>\u00a0listed are two of the greatest freestylers\u00a0of all time, someone you may have heard of before named Phelps, a double Olympic medalist in the 400 freestyle Klete Keller,<\/strong> considerably the greatest male distance swimmer in history, Grant Hackett,<\/strong> and Simon Burnett,<\/strong> who would go on to set the incumbent<\/em> 200 yard NCAA\/US Open record two years later with the University of Arizona. <\/span><\/p>\n

                That’s a mouthful. Given the ridiculously high level of competition, it wasn’t too surprising that Phelps failed to top the podium. He even\u00a0addressed the media:<\/span><\/p>\n

                \n

                “How can I be disappointed? I swam in a field with the two fastest freestylers of all time.”<\/span><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

                \"phelps-thorpe-handshake-athens\"

                Photo Courtesy: Fox Sports<\/p><\/div>\n

                Although the race ended Phelps’ shot at seven gold medals in a single Olympics (which would have tied Mark Spitz’s<\/strong> Munich 1972 campaign), there’s no doubt that the Thorpedo and Hoogie deserve recognition for motivating a spectacular\u00a0performance by Phelps four years later in Beijing.<\/p>\n

                Thorpe is definitely in contention for the greatest freestyler of all time\u2014especially due to his young age and freestyle range. He was the world champion 400 meter freestyler in 1998 at just 15 years young, and at one point held the 200, 400, and 800 long course meter freestyle world records.<\/p>\n

                He even dipped down to the 100 freestyle, where he won the bronze in Athens. The only swimmer to out-swim his 2002 400 freestyle world record of 3:40.08 was the super-suited Paul Biedermann<\/strong> in 2009\u2014by one\u00a0one-hundredth of a second.<\/p>\n

                Van den Hoogenband,<\/strong> on the other hand, may not be as well known as Thorpe, even though the two are very comparable. There was less drama around his performances compared to Thorpe (no serious doping allegations, no memorable\u00a0false starts in Athens, etc.), which may explain why. They swam during the same era, and had a lot of event crossover in the 100 and 200 freestyles.<\/p>\n

                However,\u00a0in his olympic run from Atlanta 1996 to Athens 2004, The Flying Dutchman\u00a0managed to defeat the two-time defending 100 freestyle Olympic champion, Alexander Popov,<\/strong> for the Sydney gold medal and defend it in Athens. He was the first person to break 48 seconds in the 100 long course freestyle, and\u00a0also the only double Olympic champion ever in the 100 and 200 meter freestyles (Sydney). He nearly repeated it in Athens if it weren’t for Ian Thorpe. Now retired, his Olympic career spans from 1996 to 2008.<\/p>\n

                Thorpe and Hoogie were the founding fathers of the Six. They wouldn’t be joined for another eight<\/em> years: on the first day of competition in London.<\/p>\n

                \n

                London 2012: Men’s 400 Meter Individual Medley Final<\/strong><\/h2>\n[table \u201c\u201d not found \/]
                \n\n

                Between this race and that 200 freestyle final in Athens, the Michael Phelps show starred in its full glory. Every single major international competition saw Phelps succeed\u00a0in\u00a0multiple strokes and distances, including the still-mind-boggling\u00a0pure gold streak in Beijing.<\/p>\n

                But here we are in London 2012. Most people were seriously questioning if Phelps would swim the 400 IM at trials, but he made the team after finishing just behind Ryan Lochte<\/strong> for second place in Omaha. Most Americans woke up on the first day of swimming events in complete shock upon learning that Phelps was only 0.08 away from not making the final.<\/p>\n

                He placed 8th in prelims with a 4:13.33, winning his heat only a finger nail ahead of the reining Olympic silver-medalist, Laslo Cseh<\/strong> (4:13.40). This caused a huge stir in among the swimming world. Could we finally have been witnessing a\u00a0shift in power among the swim gods?<\/p>\n

                Finals answered that. Lochte surged ahead of the rest of the field, making their efforts\u2014including Phelps’\u2014look pedestrian. With an unofficial textile world record clenched in his Florida Gator jaws, Lochte watched as Phelps was just denied his first attempted Olympic medal in 12 years.<\/p>\n

                \"\"

                Photo Courtesy: John Huet<\/p><\/div>\n

                Ryan Lochte’s 400 IM needs no introduction. He was the heavy favorite going into both trials and the Olympics. With Lochte’s teammate Phelps,\u00a0the United States has harbored an untouchable two-headed monster\u00a0in the IM events since Athens in 2004.<\/p>\n

                Pereira<\/strong> has silently been lurking in their shadows, representing Brazil internationally since 2002 and\u00a0breaking\u00a0the 200 short course meters IM world record in 2007. He made the finals in at least one IM event\u00a0in every Olympics since Athens, but finally broke\u00a0through in London with his only career Olympic medal.<\/p>\n

                Not bad, considering he defeated the two-time reining Olympic champion, Michael Phelps. While Pereira was just shy of a medal at Pan-Pacs last year finishing fourth in the 200 IM, Pereira still has plenty of fuel left in his career and is aiming for more medals in front of a home crowd in Rio.<\/p>\n

                Kosuke Hagino<\/strong> is one of the world’s hottest up-and-coming prospects. At only 20 years young, the Swimming World Magazine<\/em> 2014\u00a0Male Swimmer of the Year\u00a0has been a star on Japan’s international swimming roster for the last few years. From individual medley, to backstroke, to all ranges of freestyle, Hagino’s only problem is figuring out how to narrow his event line-up.<\/p>\n

                It’s probably not the worst problem to have in the grand scheme of things. Considering that he was inducted to the Sinister Six (Five, at that point) at only 18, the future looks bright for Hagino leading\u00a0up to Rio. His best is definitely yet to come.<\/p>\n

                \n

                London 2012: Men’s 200\u00a0Meter Butterfly\u00a0Final<\/strong><\/h2>\n[table \u201c\u201d not found \/]
                \n\n

                The results of the last two races were not complete surprises for Planet Phelps. However, London’s 200 butterfly final was a different story. Most of today’s swimming audience still remember the finish that shocked the world. It was the fourth time Phelps would swim the event at the Olympics. He was the two-time reining champion and untouched world record holder since 2001.<\/p>\n

                For 190 meters, he swam like he was. The rest was probably the longest 10 meters in the whole Olympic games, as a fresh 20-year-old Chad le Clos<\/strong> rose up to the challenge and stole Phelps’s most prized possession: the 200 long course butterfly at the Olympic games.<\/p>\n

                \"\"

                Photo Courtesy: swimhistory.org<\/p><\/div>\n

                Since London, le Clos has been heralded as the new butterfly king. He owns world records in both the 100 and 200 short course meter butterfly events, was the 2014 FINA Male Swimmer of the Year, and was the overall winner in the FINA World Cup circuit in 2011 and 2013. Look to him to defend his gold medal in Rio, especially if Phelps would like a rematch.<\/p>\n

                \n

                To recount\u00a0all of Phelps’ individual Olympic races since Athens\u00a0(14, to be exact), and think that he has only failed to win three of them is breathtaking. His individual Olympic legacy is 79 percent gold (not including Sydney). As Phelps’ time atop the swimming world throne starts to fade, Rio 2016 seems likely to be the last Olympics in his storied career. Six swimmers have\u00a0made their statements, and new up-and-comers are itching to create\u00a0their own waves.<\/span><\/p>\n

                \n

                \u201cWhen you’re itching for the waves, the only lotion is the ocean.” \u2013 Tito Makani (from Rocket Power)<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

                So let’s dive right in:<\/span>\u00a0Who else will join the Sinister Six in Rio?<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n

                \n

                A special thanks to Marshall Waller for inspiring and contributing to this article.<\/i><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

                By Michael Grenon, Swimming World College Intern He’s a living legend; the greatest of all time. He\u2019s also human. Michael Phelps has been on the international swimming radar\u00a0for 15 years\u2014and<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":91,"featured_media":107923,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":false,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"dois","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[17,7],"tags":[707,499,25134,2468,4599,2458,25002,51804,1870,616,51806,51564,6302,237,102,28341,20046,3678,19138,30732,142,45,27987,30040,51805,3181,6607],"class_list":["post-136092","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-commentary","category-usa","tag-athens","tag-beijing","tag-chad-le-clos","tag-grant-hackett","tag-ian-crocker","tag-ian-thorpe","tag-kosuke-hagino","tag-laslo-cseh","tag-london","tag-mark-spitz","tag-marshall-waller","tag-michael-grenon","tag-michael-phelps","tag-olympic-games","tag-olympics","tag-paul-biedermann","tag-peter-vanderkaay","tag-pieter-van-den-hoogenband","tag-ryan-lochte","tag-simon-burnett","tag-swimming","tag-sydney","tag-the-swimming-world-magazine","tag-thiago-pereira","tag-tito-makani","tag-university-of-arizona","tag-van-den-hoogenband"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"yoast_head":"\r\nThe Sinister 6: Better Than Phelps?<\/title>\r\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Above Michael Phelps' Olympic legacy stand an elite few: six swimmers who have out-swum him head-to-head in the Olympics since Athens 11 years ago. Of course, all six are fairly well-known in the swimming community, and were already known when they topped the greatest of all time. As special as Phelps\u2019 gold medal individual performances were, these other six legends each have their unique (and perhaps underrated) stories. Introducing the Sinister 6...\" \/>\r\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\r\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.swimmingworldmagazine.com\/news\/the-sinister-6-better-than-phelps\/\" \/>\r\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\r\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\r\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"The Sinister 6: Better Than Phelps?\" \/>\r\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Above Michael Phelps' Olympic legacy stand an elite few: six swimmers who have out-swum him head-to-head in the Olympics since Athens 11 years ago. 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