Associated Press
INDIANAPOLIS ó Michael Phelps removed his goggles, tore off the two caps he was wearing, tossed them on the deck and turned around to check the scoreboard. He scowled upon seeing the time in yellow lights next to his name.
As expected, the 14-time Olympic gold medalist racked up his second victory of the night at the U.S. national championships Wednesday. It just wasn’t up to his exacting standards.
Phelps won the 200-meter butterfly in 1 minute, 52.76 seconds, well off his world record of 1:52.03 set in Beijing.
“I’m not happy about the 200 fly, but I think some of the things that happened are going to be helpful to me to swim faster,” he said. “When I’m satisfied is when I’m doing a best time. I’m not used to not doing a best time when I shave and taper.”
Phelps was pushed in the next lane by Tyler Clary, a 20-year-old Michigan swimmer who stayed close throughout and finished second in 1:53.64.
“That was one of the greatest swims I’ve ever done,” Clary said. “It was pretty cool. I could see out of the corner of my eye. I was with him at 150 and just being with him was awesome.”