Olympian Michael Phelps opened up about what he calls a “downward spiral” on Wednesday morning in an interview with the Today Show’s Matt Lauer.
Advertisement
“Leading into London, I didn’t want anything to do with the sport”, Phelps told Lauer.
“I’m setting myself up now to have a chance to have good results and to be happy at the end of the year”, Phelps said. “I honestly don’t know”. But he reiterated his 100-percent commitment to training for this summer’s Games in Rio de Janeiro, which would be Phelps’ fifth Olympics – and, he says, his last.
“I don’t know”, Phelps replied.
The Olympic swimmer eventually checked himself into The Meadows, a residential treatment facility in the Arizona desert for 45 days.
After some trying times, including a retirement, a second DUI arrest and a suspension, Phelps is back in the water and back on track to take home the gold yet again. “I don’t know if it was, like, afraid of just letting go and showing who I am or what it was”. Thankfully, the aquatic athlete now has a new outlook on life and is looking forward to retiring the way he wants to retire!
Asked if he believes he has a drinking problem, he defiantly stated, “No, because you can put a beer in front of me, or an alcoholic drink in front of me, and I won’t feel the urge to drink it”. I sleep more. I wake up every day and have a completely clear head. “That’s the difference. I had no desire to go work out before”.
“I want to be here”. I wanna retire how I wanna retire and I have a great opportunity to do that.
Even though Michael Phelps is the most decorated Olympic athlete in the history of the games, it doesn’t mean he’s ideal.
Advertisement
Phelps and his fiancée Nicole are expecting their first child in a few weeks and he is looking forward to possibly having his son up in the stands watching him compete in Rio. “I mean, I haven’t trained like this in a decade”.
