Share

Rio 2016: Singapore delights as Schooling beats Phelps in swimming heat

Because history and record-breaking achievements always call his name, Phelps was trying to become the first Olympian to win four consecutive gold medals in two different events. Boglarka Kapas of Hungary took bronze.

Advertisement

Michael Phelps swims in the 100-meter butterfly final Friday night.

Schooling’s medal is the first won by the Singapore at the these Games, as he concludes his swimming campaign on an unprecedented high.

Schooling, who took bronze at last year’s world championships, punched the water and roared with delight as Phelps swam over to pat him on the back before le Clos ruffled the youngster’s hair.

Phelps has already amassed three golds at the Rio Games and has other priorities, balancing the need to qualify comfortably without damaging his chances for the evening men’s 200m individual medley final.

Beyond Austin, Texas has figured prominently in the first week of the Olympics.

Schooling, Singapore’s first male Olympic swimming finalist and the shortest of the eight competitors, led from start to finish in a sensational swim to bag the Republic’s first-ever Olympic swimming medal. “50.3 is obviously a really good time and a very respectable time”. It was for people that came before me and inspired me to stay in the sport. “Were the papers here, I’d sign them tomorrow”.

And who could possibly forget Simone Biles? Since then, he’s been on a mission to accomplish his dream of becoming an Olympic gold medalist, and accomplished that feat tonight against Phelps, one of his swimming idols.

On Thursday night, the 19-year-old astounded the crowd with a almost flawless floor performance, displaying her gravity-defying feats on her way to earning a near-perfect score of 15.933.

The exercise was no different in this Olympic campaign, the forecasts constantly evolving in the leadup to the Games in Rio. “Can’t complain too much”, he said.

Phelps touched second in 51.14 in the 100 fly, earning silver in the event he’d won each of the past three Olympics.

Now that is big, like Texas.

Advertisement

Get free real-time news alerts from the Downtown Austin-UT Patch.

Rio 2016 I'm Ready to Retire Says Michael Phelps