LONDON —
Olympic chief Jacque Rogge and athletes such as football legend Pele on Tuesday heaped praise on American swimmer Michael Phelps who is now the most successful modern era Olympian in every aspect of the medal count.
A gold medal in the 4x200 meters freestyle relay and a silver medal in the 200m butterfly lifted Phelps’ tally since 2004 to 19: 15 gold, two silver and two bronze.
The 27-year-old moved past Soviet gymnast Larisa Latynina, who won 18 medals between 1956 and 1964, nine gold, five silver and four bronze.
Latynina, Finnish runner Paavo Nurmi, American swimmer Mark Spitz and sprinter/long jumper Carl Lewis are the next best gold-medalists with nine each.
Phelps won six golds in Athens 2004, bettered Spitz’ 1972 mark of seven golds with eight 2008 in Beijing, and now has a 1-2-0 count in London, with three more events to come.
“To take part in an Olympic Games is an achievement for any athlete - to win a medal makes you a member of an elite band, but Michael Phelps has made Olympic history tonight by winning his 19th medal and I salute his unique achievement,” the IOC president Rogge said.
“He breaks the record of Russian gymnast Larisa Latynina and by doing so he joins a group of athletes who have continued to strive for excellency in sport.”
Pele tweeted: “Congratulations to MichaelPhelps for his record breaking 19th Olympics medal. A true champion.”
German basketball star Dirk Nowitzki, the 2011 US National Basketball League MVP, tweeted: “Phelps with his 15th gold medal. Crazy. Livin legend.”
The media reaction was also pouring in soon after one of the greatest Olympic moment in the 116-year history of the Games.
“Michael Phelps is no longer an Olympian. He is The Olympian,” said Britain’s Daily Telegraph, while The Guardian previewed its front page for Wednesday with a huge photo of the star in his preferred butterfly style and the headline “the greatest Olympian.”
USA Today said on their website: “Michael Phelps earns place in history with 19 Olympic medals ... For Michael Phelps, Beijing was about perfection - and London is about history.”
Germany’s Sueddeutsche Zeitung (SZ) said: “Mister 19 of Olympic world” and lamented that Phelps and the now 77-year-old Latynina have never met.
“The two would probably have a lot to talk about, how it was in the past, how it is now. Unfortunately they only meet in the record lists,” the SZ said.
Also in the mix was a jibe from a Canadian Twitter user, Sid Seixeiro, on Americans having to wait for the tape-delayed NBC broadcast of the race that was only available live on the internet.
“Dear America: Michael Phelps just became the greatest Olympian of all-time. Signed, Canadians who can watch things live,” the tweet said.
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)2012 Deutsche Presse-Agentur GmbH (Hamburg, Germany)
Visit Deutsche Presse-Agentur GmbH (Hamburg, Germany) at www.dpa.de/English.82.0.html
Distributed by MCT Information Services
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