Phelps Wins 18th Gold!!!

You know, perhaps I should be less sarcastic, but unfortunately the Olympics bring out the worst in me. As many of you know, by this time next week, American swimmer, Michael Phelps, will likely have won more medals than 90% of the countries competing in the Games. So, to put that in perspective, Phelps will have more medals than a country like...say....Nigeria. That wouldn't be a big deal if Nigeria were the size of the Cayman Islands, but Nigeria is actually the eighth most populous country in the world with a population of 140 million people.

I've seen enough of Phelps on TV to know a couple of things. One, he seems like a really nice guy...someone who you would cheer for to do well, and two, he's the best swimmer in the world today and is certain to be a legend in the sport. But eight gold medals? Come on. Why not ten...or fifteen...or twenty? The Olympics has become such a marketing juggernaut that it has lost it's soul. When a team of athletes (ie. basketball, water polo) or an individual (ie. boxing, tennis) has to endure a grueling two week competition to win ONE medal...doesn't it seem a little unbalanced that one athlete can come home with eight? Obviously, if you're Michael Phelps, you're a damn good swimmer....but do we really 100 meter, 200 meter, 400 meter, medleys, team relays, butterflies, freestyle, etc., etc., to prove it again and again? Some people will disagree, pointing out that you'd train differently for each event, but it doesn't seem to make much of a difference to a multi-medalled Olympian.

Personally, I hope Phelps wins his eight...and I hope they add a 150m race for him to win a ninth...why not? He's a great swimmer, a great athlete, and he deserves to take pride in his accomplishments. But the IOC really needs to take a hard look at itself and decide if the Olympics are to be a world showcase of amateur sport...or a commercial venture designed to ensure mass numbers of medals going to a few select nations with near professional athletes fighting to be Coca Cola's next ad campaign.