Michael Phelps: Why American Star Shouldn't Be Concerned with Growing Criticism

Michael Phelps is the greatest Olympian of all time, and he should pay no attention to teammate Tyler Clary's critique of his work ethic.

Phelps has won 14 gold medals—more than any other athlete by a large margin—and if he ends up on a podium after three of the five events he is competing in, he will have the record for most overall medals.

Clary is a 23-year-old first time Olympian and swam at Michigan while Phelps used the University’s facilities to train for the Beijing games.

The California native said the following to Jim Alexander of the Riverside Press-Enterprise.

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The fact that he doesn’t have to work as hard to get that done, it’s a real shame. I think it’s too bad. You see that all too often, where you get athletes that are incredibly talented that really take it for granted. I think the things he could have done if he’d worked as hard as I do would have been even more incredible than what he has pulled off.

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Phelps has since downplayed the comments and he and Clary have cleared the air, according to ESPN.

The criticism was not entirely baseless. Phelps himself has admitted there were points in his career where he lacked the proper motivation. When discussing how he felt following the 2008 Olympics, he told Selene Yeager of Details Magazine, “I wasn't motivated. I did nothing, literally nothing, for a long time. I gained 25 pounds.” 

A photograph of him smoking marijuana went viral in 2009, and this did not help his image as a tireless worker.

But any athlete can get burned out and, in the end, Phelps’ performance in the pool is all that matters. Despite what Clary has said, he does not appear to have slowed down much since his record-setting performance in Beijing.

He won gold in the 100-meter and 200-meter butterfly at the 2011 World Championships. He took silver in the 200-meter freestyle and the 200-meter individual medley, finishing less than a second behind Ryan Lochte in both events. 

His performance at the United States Olympic trials was equally impressive. He went head-to-head with Lochte in four events and won three of them, although not a single one was decided by more than a second. 

Phelps is still the best swimmer in the world and will be a favorite to win gold in each of the five events he will take part in during the London games.

One of those events will be the 200-meter butterfly, which Clary will also be swimming. When the final race is over in that event, Phelps will have a gold medal around his neck and Clary will have his foot in his mouth.