I have always admired Michael Phelps's swimming prowess, and along with the
rest of my family have rooted vociferously and celebrated his stupendous
successes. His unprecedented exploits in the swimming pool, both in Athens in
2004 where he was the superstar, and in Beijing in 2008 where he was also a
superstar, left me speechless.
Until two months ago, when he broke the world 100-metres record in New York
while defeating American champion Tyson Gay, I had not heard of Usain Bolt.
Yet, I am certain that Usain Bolt's performance in the Beijing Olympics
exceeded that of Michael Phelps's.
A track aficionado who has followed the Olympics since Rome in 1960
(superstars: Muhammad Ali and Wilma Rudolph), and who was fortunate enough to
be a member and captain of Bangladesh Track and Field teams between 1966-71 and
the record holder in 800 metres (the disclosure suits the moment), the writer
would like to think that he understands the nuances of the Olympics.
My beef with swimming is that, like the Winter Olympics, it is a rich man's
sport. (Winter Olympics was not a part of the original Olympic movement). How
many Jamaicans or Kenyans win medals in swimming? Swimming is dominated by the
US, Europe, and Australia. From only 3 events in the first Olympics of the
modern era in 1896 Athens, swimming events have ballooned to 34. Track and
field has always been the centrepiece of the Olympics. Events in track and
field have increased from 12 in 1896 to 47 now. Most of the increase is due to
the inclusion of women in the Olympics in 1928.
Swimming events take place in a 50-metre pool. All events are multiples of 50.
Swimmers traverse the distances in different styles: going forward in
freestyle, in breaststrokes, like a butterfly, or going backwards in a
backstroke, and a combination (medley) of all the four. There are several
relays for each of these styles and medleys, over varying distances.
The track and field equivalents of the swimming events are: running forward,
running backwards, running sideways and a combination thereof within a 50-metre
track. You get the picture!
The point is, swimming and track and field are in different leagues. Only rich
nations can afford swimming pools and swimming programs. On the contrary, every
nation, big or small, rich or poor, participates in all the track and field
events. Track and field does not require much expenditure. That is why poorer
nations win track and field medals, and winning medals in track and field
events are an order of magnitude harder than in swimming.
Michael Phelps's performance in Beijing was sensational. By winning eight gold
medals he smashed Mark Spitz's 7-gold medal tally of 1972 Munich Olympics
(superstar: Mark Spitz). But to proclaim Michael Phelps as the greatest
Olympian ever is a bit of a stretch. Phelps should be compared to Spitz.
The writer attended the 1972 Munich Olympics in which Spitz won 7 gold medals
all in world record times. Phelps won 8 in Beijing, breaking 7 world records.
Spitz swam in a modest pool and wore swimming trunks that could have been
purchased from a grocery store. Phelps wore laser suits, designed by Nasa, to
minimise friction. To aid swimmers achieve world records, the Chinese made the
pool 3-metres deep, instead of the traditional 2-metres, and designed the lane
dividers as shock absorbers, to minimise turbulence. They also adjusted the
water consistency, so as to make it more conducive to faster times.
With a pool engineered for faster times, enter Michael Phelps, the perfect
human dolphin. His upper body is that of a 7-footer, while his lower body is
that of a six-footer: the perfect combination for a swimmer. Even then, Phelps
struggled in events that were100-metres long, and excelled in events 200-metres
long. In spite of everything that went in his favour, I still believe that
Michael Phelps is the greatest swimmer ever.
Track sprint records are broken by hundredths of seconds. The best the great
Carl Lewis could do was 9.86 seconds in the 100-metres. Usain Bolt became the
first sprinter to take the world's 100-metres record into the 9.60s, to 9.69 to
be exact. Had he not been so surprised to find himself so far ahead, and not
started celebrating 30-metres from the finish, he could have taken the record
down to the 9.50s. My prediction is that if Bolt runs the perfect race, he
could be the first sprinter to take the 100-metres record into the 9.40s;
almost one full second better than the legendary Jesse Owens in 1936.
I never imagined that I would see anyone approach American Michael Johnson's
incredible 200-metres world record, set at the 1996 Atlanta Olympics, (19.32
seconds) in my life time. Yet, running all alone, Usain bolted past that in
19.30 seconds.
Bolt then linked up with three other Jamaican speed merchants including the
former world record holder Asafa Powell, to smash the record of 37.40 second,
set by the Americans including Carl Lewis in 1992, and took it down to 37.10
seconds. This is unheard of! Sprint records are never broken by 0.3 seconds!
If Bolt and his Jamaican teammates had exchanged the baton as well as the
Russians do, the record would have gone into the 36-seconds range. What makes
this more incredible is that Usain Bolt had run four races on his way to
100-metres gold, and another 4 races on his way to his 200 metres gold, before
running the third leg of the 4x100 relay. I have never seen a 6-foot 5-inches
man run so fast with such quick leg turnover.
Longevity is an essential part for Olympic greatness. The great Carl Lewis was
a member of five US Olympic teams -- 1980 (Americans boycotted the 1980 Moscow
Olympics, protesting the Russian invasion of Afghanistan in 1979), 1984 (Russia
boycotted the Los Angeles Olympics in retaliation; superstar: Carl Lewis), 1988
(superstars: Carl Lewis and Jackie Joyner-Kersee), 1992 (superstars: US
basketball "dream team") and 1996 (superstar: Michael Johnson), on his way to
nine Olympic gold medals.
Lewis won two golds in the 100 metres, one gold (and a silver) in the 200
meters, two golds in the 4x100 relay, and four golds in the long jump. Just as
both the American men and women relay teams did again this year, had the
Americans not dropped the baton in the preliminary rounds of 4x100 relay in
1988, Lewis would have won at least another gold.
Before they can be compared to Lewis, both Phelps and Bolt have to demonstrate
Olympic longevity. Carl Lewis remains the only sprinter to repeat as the
Olympics champion in the 100-metres, in 1984 and 1988. In spite of his
world-shattering performance at Beijing, Usain Bolt has to demonstrate that he
too is capable of sustained excellence with as much regularity as Carl Lewis.
The Chinese ought to be congratulated for hosting such a spectacular Olympics.
Their 40-billion dollar Olympic expenditure and state-supported training
programs paid handsome dividends in terms of national pride and gold medal haul
(51, many in lesser events). For sixteen days the world forgot about China's
human rights abuses, repression in Tibet and Xinjiang, and its intolerance of
dissent. China spent 300 million dollars on the opening ceremony alone; an
extravagance possible only in a spendthrift totalitarian regime; something the
democratic host of the 2012 Olympics, London, will not and cannot match.
Nevertheless, the world could not but have noticed that in technology, in
wealth and even in sports, China is going to be the leading world power in the
21st century.
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