by Cicely Richard

Created on: January 02, 2009   Last Updated: January 12, 2009

Michael Phelps surpassed everyone as the best athlete of 2008. With a body built for the water, he swam his way into the history books for his wins at the 2008 Olympic Games in Beijing, China. The 23 year old won the most gold medals in a single game and broke fellow swimmer Mark Spitz 1972 record of seven gold medals at a single games. With a career high of 16 medals, 14 of which are gold, Phelps is the most decorated Olympian of all times. In addition to being a great athlete, he's proved himself outside of the pool.

At the 2008 Olympics Michael Phelps smashed swimming records every time he jumped in the pool. During the games, he participated in eight events, three team and five individual, and received gold medals in all of them. His road to those medals was the result of hard work and having a good group of teammates backing him up.

In addition to the trial events that he had to complete in order to qualify for the Olympics, Phelps had to swim four days in a row, from August 10 to 13, an exhausting schedule for even the most seasoned athlete. He proceeded to win medals and break world records in each event. He won medals for the 400 m individual medley, 4 x 100 m freestyle relay, 200 m freestyle, 200 m butterfly, and the 4 x 200 m freestyle relay. The last two events were performed on the same day, less than a few hours apart.

Phelps had one day off before he had to hit the pool again. Again, he had to compete days in a row in order to get his name etched in the sports history record books. Between August 15 and 17, he won his final three gold medals in the 200 m individual medley, the 100 m butterfly and the 4 x 100 m medley relay. The 100 m butterfly was a squeaker, as he edged out silver medalist Milorad Cavic by 1/100 of a second. It was such a photo finish that Cavic's protest prompted officials to review the underwater tapes to be certain about the outcome. Unlike the rest of his events, he did not set a world record in this one.

Outside of the pool, Phelps received awards and accolades from everyone. He was named Sport's Illustrated Person of the Year. In addition, he received tons of million dollar contracts because of his success in the pool. Besides the praise and endorsement deals, he shed light on other issues.

As a child, Phelps was diagnosed with ADHD and swimming served as an outlet for all of his energy. His success at the games and the support of his family could serve as an example for any family with a child who suffers from this disorder that can, at times, make them outcast among their peers and even their instructors. To show how humble he was from his success, Phelps even donated the check for one of his endorsements to a charitable cause.

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