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Politics : Formerly About Advanced Micro Devices -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: Road Walker who wrote (198122)	8/23/2004 9:19:53 PM
From: steve harris	Respond to of 1578332

John, I figured out why kerry doesn't have a chance to win in November. He can't make his bottom lip quiver like Clinton could...

To: Road Walker who wrote (198122)	8/24/2004 2:55:07 AM
From: tejek	Respond to of 1578332

<font color=brown> Phelps did us proud!<font color=black> *************************************************** An Olympian gesture** In show of sportsmanship, Phelps gives up his spot in final relay to teammate Crocker; he’ll still be eligible for eighth medal of Games BY MICHAEL DOBIE STAFF CORRESPONDENT August 21, 2004 ATHENS, Greece -- Just when it seemed impossible that anyone in the Olympic swim meet could upstage Michael Phelps, someone did. Michael Phelps. Which figures. The guy who has made people shake their heads all week did it one more time. Phelps was stunning in the pool, as usual, with a come-from-behind victory over Ian Crocker in Friday night's 100-meter butterfly; both men broke the Olympic record Phelps had set in qualifying the day before. The effort gave Phelps five gold medals and seven overall, leaving him one away from tying Soviet gymnast Aleksandr Dityatin (1980) for most medals in one Olympic Games. After the win, Phelps had one event remaining: Saturday's 4 x 100 medley relay, the last event of the meet and a race the United States never has lost. Both Phelps and Crocker knew Friday night's winner would swim the butterfly leg on the relay. Then came the stunner: About two hours after the race concluded, Phelps announced he had decided to let Crocker swim the relay. The decision will not affect Phelps' chance of tying Dityatin. Because Phelps swam the relay in Friday morning's qualifying heat, he will receive whatever medal the team earns. But his gesture was Olympian: Sportsmanship and friendship trumped ego and self-interest. Phelps said he relinquished his spot for two reasons: He wanted to give Crocker another chance after his poor performance in the 4 x 100 freestyle relay last Sunday. That effort led to a third-place finish by the Americans and the bronze medal that cost Phelps his chance at Mark Spitz' record of seven gold medals in one Games. The second reason cited by Phelps was that the relay would be faster with Crocker on it. The incongruity of the statement was startling. Here was the best swimmer in the world, a man who broke the Olympic 100 butterfly record twice in two days and beat Crocker twice, saying his presence would make the relay slower. "Ian is one of the best relay swimmers in U.S. history," said Phelps, adding that Crocker has the fastest butterfly split of all time. "When we want to put the four fastest guys out there, we look at everything, all the past swims, and we make the best decision. And we're going to have the four fastest guys out there." Phelps and Crocker are good friends, and their rivalry in the 100 fly has been fierce. Phelps said he was not sure whether he would have made the decision for anyone other than Crocker, who was suffering from a sore throat that affected his performance in the earlier relay. "I thought about it more and more and, like I said, I think he needed another chance to prove himself," Phelps said. Phelps admitted he didn't know whether he would have made the same decision had he needed to swim in the final to earn a medal, as was the case in 1972 for Spitz. The relay news overshadowed a superb race led by Crocker from start to just short of the finish. Phelps looked like he had no chance with as little as 30 meters remaining but kept chipping into the lead. "I didn't see Michael come up on me but I knew he'd be there," Crocker said. "I knew that the race was going to come down to the last few inches." Phelps still seemed behind when they came to the wall but snuck a long arm in ahead of Crocker to come away with the victory, 51.25 seconds to Crocker's 51.29. "He was actually behind when he touched first," U.S. men's coach Eddie Reese said. "It was an amazing race. Every time they race there's a lead and then comes the little shark from 'Jaws.'" Phelps and Spitz are the only male swimmers to have won more than two individual events at a single Olympics; each has four. Phelps finished with one world record, six Olympic records, and one magnanimous gesture. "Michael said that's what he felt like was the right thing to do," said Bob Bowman, his personal coach. "I suggested that whatever's in his heart is what he should do. In his heart he feels like Ian deserves a chance." The best swimmer in the world will be sitting in the stands, cheering his teammates. newsday.com