Michael Phelps Quotations

Even in high school, I'd tell my mom I was sick of swimming and wanted to try to play golf. She wasn't too happy. She'd say, 'Think about this.' And I'd always end up getting back in the pool.

And, you know, being able to wear the stars and stripes, when you step up on one of the blocks or, you know, when you step off of an airplane or when you hear the national anthem play, you know, it's one of the greatest feelings in the world because you know that there are people at home who are supporting you and watching you.

I am 26 and, and I don't recover as fast as I have in the past.

I've been able to get an excitement back in the water.

I like to just think of myself as a normal person who just has a passion, has a goal and a dream and goes out and does it. And that's really how I've always lived my life.

I think sometimes I guess you see records, say you want to get there and use that as motivation. In a way, it's kind of cool if there is a possibility to rewrite history and be up there with the greats of Olympic history.

Swimming is normal for me. I'm relaxed. I'm comfortable, and I know my surroundings. It's my home.

You can't put a limit on anything. The more you dream, the farther you get.

I want to go to the World Cup. I want to go to the Masters. I want to go... anywhere.

This is my 20th year in the sport. I've known swimming and that's it. I don't want to swim past age 30; if I continue after this Olympics, and come back in 2016, I'll be 31. I'm looking forward to being able to see the other side of the fence.

I won't predict anything historic. But nothing is impossible.

I think that everything is possible as long as you put your mind to it and you put the work and time into it. I think your mind really controls everything.

I'm the same kind of guy before all this happened.

The more you dream the more you achieve.

I feel most at home in the water. I disappear. That's where I belong.

I think the biggest things I am looking forward to is getting new faces into the sport. Getting kids who could be afraid of water to feel comfortable in the pool.

I want to be able to look back and say, 'I've done everything I can, and I was successful.' I don't want to look back and say I should have done this or that. I'd like to change things for the younger generation of swimmers coming along.

If you want to be the best, you have to do things that other people aren't willing to do.

I think goals should never be easy, they should force you to work, even if they are uncomfortable at the time.

I believe in God; I'm not saying I'm highly religious.

I can't remember the last day I didn't train.

I always thought, it would be neat to make the Olympic team.

I have the opportunity to be part of swimming history. To take the sport to a new level would be an honor for me. There's no better time to try this than now.

I want to test my maximum and see how much I can do. And I want to change the world of swimming.

It's cool just because I've had this dream of changing the sport of swimming and it's finally happening.

I consider myself normal. I've spent 20 years in the pool. I consider that something that's normal.

People say to me, 'You're so lucky. You get to see the world.' But I don't. I go to the hotel and to the pools and back again. That's it.

Being compared to Ian Thorpe, that could be one of the greatest compliments you could ever get in swimming - being compared to him and Mark Spitz.

My mom put me and my sisters in the water to feel comfortable, to have water safety.

I know it won't be eight medals again. If you want to compare me to that, that's your decision, not mine. I'm going out there to try to accomplish the things that I have in my mind and in my heart.

If I didn't swim my best, I'd think about it at school, at dinner, with my friends. It would drive me crazy.

I wouldn't say anything is impossible. I think that everything is possible as long as you put your mind to it and put the work and time into it.

I have reached a place in my life where I need to sit down and say, 'Well, what do I do? What's best for me?' I need to look into options for the future.

Why is it such a big deal what I'm swimming?

If I bring back only one gold people are going to say it's a disappointment. But not too many of them own an Olympic gold medal so if I get one I'm going to be happy.

I try to separate my personal life from swimming.

I learned how fast you can go from being an international hero to being a reference in a joke on a late night talk show.

Once I'm already in my room, I still have to open a door to get into my bed. It's like a giant box. It's like the boy in a bubble.

There were times I wouldn't come to practice, because it didn't excite me. It wasn't interesting. I was kind of going through the motions.

I think to be - for me to be an American is - you know, it's one of the greatest things in the world for - you know, for me just because I've been able to grow up with everything. The freedom. You know, in my eyes this is the greatest country in the world.

So, you know, if, if I wanted to get up and just play golf one day, I would just get up and play golf. If I wanted to go to Vegas, I would just get up and go to Vegas.

My goal is one Olympic gold medal. Not many people in this world can say, 'I'm an Olympic gold medalist.'

I live a pretty conservative life, so I probably really haven't done anything crazy.

I used to always go to church on holidays, but I don't go much any more.

Yeah, my friends call me Mike, Michael or just my last name.

Every day after I wake up, I think, 'Wait... this can't be real; I'm still going to wake up.'

When we have a home crowd like this and the excitement that we have, it carries us a long way, ... We knew it was going to be tough. The Aussies weren't going to roll over and let us dominate. That's how they are, and how they've always been.

We wanted to try something new to get more attention from the average Joe. Hopefully, everyone likes it and it will attract new fans to the sport.

I'm a little worried about the work. It's a big step up from high school.

I looked over and I thought 'Oh, man, I've got Roland again?'

He got remarried and went on his way and did his thing and we did our thing.

There is a one woman in China that claimed she paid $50 to get my e-mail address. It was pretty shocking. I got one this morning from Scotland. A girl's requesting a signed photo of me.

He just got out of the 100m fly, so I had a little advantage. But you know he's going to put something together.

I was able to not have the success I wanted but I was able to learn a lot over this week that will carry me for the next few years.

It doesn't matter what else is going on. When you walk into your arena or your - whatever you excel at, you're there to take care of the job that you have to do.

That's the most pain I've ever been in after a 200. It's exhaustion more than anything.

I was really hurting pretty bad the final 75 meters, I was definitely in pain, ... My body has been beaten up pretty good in the last three months.

When the Australians walked out, the crowd went nuts, and when we walked out, the crowd went even more nuts. I can't describe how amazing that was. Three thousand people were here rooting for the two strongest swimming nations. I'll never forget that, and I was glad to be part of it.

You always know he's going to put something together, ... He's got some speed, but we were able to hang on.

Being able to do something that's never been done before, that's what I've always wanted to do. . . . There was nothing that was going to stand in my way of being the first.

Nobody is going to put a limit on what I'm doing.

We're eager to have our readers be able to read the newspaper in 18 to 19 minutes. My wife calls it 'Newspapers Without Guilt.' I can read the newspaper, get through this newspaper before it goes on the recycling stack.

With everything that's been going on, it's probably a decent swim for right now.

We wanted to split our relays up and see what would happen, ... It was a good way to end the meet.

We wanted to secure the top spot, we wanted to be safe on the relay takeoffs, ... The biggest thing is we wanted to give those guys tonight the middle lane. We expect a fast swim from those four guys.

This was a dream come true for me, ... Ever since I was a little kid, I was dreaming of this. But when I saw Erik over there, it was even more incredible.

Bob has clearly stated that he's dropping the bomb on me, ... Hopefully we can change a few things in the upcoming year and improve on this.

Bob and I have gotten into it a number, number of times.

Folks between the ages of 25 and 54, households with children, households with a median income of $73,000, that's our target demographic.

It was very tough doubling up but I've got no regrets. I was just destroyed (in the 100m) but I just wanted to put that race behind me.

It was tough. I wasn't able to get out with the guys, ... I was in their wake. I was just destroyed.

The things I am doing right now I have dreamt about my whole life,

People really expect to get news and information for free. They get it free on TV, they get it free on the web, and there's no reason they shouldn't get it free in the newspaper.

A newspaper with shorter stories, more stories, and enormous emphasis on local news which is the news people don't get.

A lot of new obstacles are coming, a lot of new feelings are coming, ... I'm just taking it for what it is and learning from the mistakes I had this year.

It's kind of a weird change, coming from Baltimore to Ann Arbor because its so much smaller. I like bigger towns better.

It's great for us coming off an Olympics to have a team like this.

It takes a lot more out of you racing in the finals. I think it's definitely a lot different from the trials, a whole lot more emotionally draining.

That's an indication I'm sort of starting to fade.

The last 20 meters weren't very good, they didn't feel good,

I knew it would take a world record to win this race, ... He was better prepared than I was for this race. The Texas guys have awesome starts and turns -- two things I don't do well. Those are two things I need to improve on before Athens.

I'm satisfied in a way because it was an eye-opener,

In 2003, I was in the best shape that I've ever been in my entire life. Last summer was something that I'd always dreamt of, ... This doesn't even compare to those meets. It's almost more of a steppingstone than anything.

I see my goals as personal and I always have. That's just been how I've worked.

I grew up around the pool with my sisters. Both of my sisters swam. I was always there. So I thought, why not? My mom put us in the water for water safety, so we were comfortable in the water in case anything ever happened. I learned that way, and started liking it more and more.

My strategy is that I actually have absolutely no strategy.

What does God mean to me? I guess I was made the way I am for some reason, and I've been able to find the talent I have, and I've been able to use it, so I'm grateful for that. I believe in God; [but] I'm not saying I'm highly religious.

I felt comfortable in the water. I was in my own world, focused. I love sports and I'm a very goal-oriented person. Once I started falling in love with sports, it was easy. I was able to put my mind on something and go for it. That's how I am with everything, it doesn't matter what it is that I do. If I want to do something, nothing will stand in my way.

When you use your imagination anything can happen.

I have had extreme ups and downs. The biggest thing I learned after I broke my wrist is to never give up. Nothing in life will ever come easy. It depends on how you deal with those obstacles and how you overcome those obstacles. If you can overcome them, you're a stronger person. If you make mistakes along the way, as long as you never make that same mistake again, you're a successful person.

I'm kind of a creature of habit. Once I get used to doing things, it's like second nature.

One thing with me, and every goal I've had - - in the sport of swimming, my mother didn't know my goals. The only person that knew my goals were my coaches.

Things can change in the blink of an eye!

At a very young age, I wrote down the goals that I had so I could always see what I wanted to accomplish. And I would look at that goal sheet and think "I still want to do this."So I'd decide "I'm not quitting."

The only reason I started swimming was for water safety. Then, once I started falling in love with sports, I got more comfortable with it.

[Phelps] firmly denies that he takes drugs, suggesting that the notorious photo of him smoking from a bong was a one-time lapse of judgment.

It's not how you start, but it's how you finish.

Swimming is fun. It's a lot funner than golf.

I love to race the best people in the world and the fastest people in the world.

I engaged in behavior which was regrettable and demonstrated bad judgment. I'm 23 years old and despite the successes I've had in the pool, I acted in a youthful and inappropriate way, not in a manner people have come to expect from me. For this, I am sorry. I promise my fans and the public it will not happen again.