Mark Spitz wasn’t quite sure what he was going to do when he met Michael Phelps for the first time. There was no script, no pre-programmed patter designed for the sellout crowd of 9,878 at the US Olympic swimming trials in downtown Long Beach Saturday. Spitz had watched Phelps surge to his third individual title at the trials, this one in the 200m butterfly, and went with pure instinct, the quality always so visible in legends.
Spitz, wearing sunglasses and looking fit, accepted a huge round of applause and long ovation. He shook hands with Phelps. Phelps leaned forward and they held a quick, private conversation in the most public of settings, an award ceremony.
Spitz put the medal around Phelps’ neck. Then he joined Phelps on the podium, holding the 19-year-old’s arm in the air and pointed at him. Indeed, Phelps was the one to watch now. This was most legitimate endorsement of Phelps’ lofty Olympian goals.
All that was missing was the flaming torch being passed and a rainbow over the harbour.
“I think he really has a chance to do this,” Spitz said. “That’s one of the things I told him.”
He was, of course, talking about breaking his record of seven gold medals, which he achieved at the 1972 Olympics. Phelps is entered in six individual events here and is hitting three-for-three after the first four days of the trials. Though he had seemed almost nonchalant about never meeting Spitz before, the scene seemed to have a transforming effect on Phelps.
“It was an honour,” Phelps said. “Having one of the best swimmers of all time up there, shaking your hand, putting your hand up in the air and saying he’s behind you 100 percent, that’s motivation right there.
“That was probably one of the most exciting moments I’ve had in the sport. Standing next to one of the greatest swimming icons and one of the greatest swimmers ever while he was giving me the award for the 200 fly, one of his more dominating events. It’s something I will never forget.”
Spitz has a deep appreciation of Phelps’ difficult quest. “One of the things Spitz said to me was he was behind me and he knows exactly what I’m going through, for me to focus on the swimming and he’ll be over in Athens cheering me on,” Phelps said.
