“I got to throw that race out” – Michael Phelps on his mental preparation to do the 8-medal run at the 2008 Olympics

Michael Phelps is a veritable living legend. The swimmer hung up his boots in 2016 as the most decorated Olympian of all time. His 28 Olympic medal tally, including 23 gold medals, remains a record that most can only dream of.

Phelps is lauded as the greatest swimmer in modern history, and there arre certain moments that stood out in his career that createdhis legacy.

The Baltimore native stunned the world in 2008 when he won eight medals at the Beijing Olympics. The American toiled hard and proved that no record was unbeatable for him.

Despite his retirement from competitive swimming, the world continues to laud Michael Phelps for his accolades. His impressive eight-medal run at the 2008 Olympics remains his best-ever accomplishment.

Phelps once spoke about the legendary medal run at the 2008 Olympics. The swimmer revealed that he has been preparing for the moment since 2002. According to Phelps, he was “physically, emotionally and mentally” ready for the win. The athlete, while opening up on the event, said that he believed in the “process” despite people’s lack of trust in it.

Speaking about his preparations for the 2008 Olympics, Michael Phelps said:

“When I said I wanted to win eight gold medals, basically half the people in the swimming world thought I was absolutely crazy and nobody could ever do something like that. But for me, I was somebody who believed in it and somebody who believed in the process of getting there. I knew it wasn’t going to happen overnight… but every small thing we did was a small stepping stone in order to have that chance and that opportunity to do what I did in 2008. From 2002 to 2008, it was basically trial and error.”

Furthermore, Michael Phelps added that he was constantly preparing himself to deal with the pressure. The swimmer revealed that he would intentionally pay less attention to medal wins in order to focus more on the big goal.

He added:

“There are only few people who can deal with the stress that happens when we’re there. So, we had to ensure that we are physically, emotionally and mentally ready… I had to be ready to be able to manage my emotions through that week. Yeah, winning a gold medal is absolutely incredible, there’s nothing better than standing on the podium and listening to your national anthem play… but for me, I knew that I had seven other events after the first day.”

“So, I have to throw that to the back of my head, I got to throw that race out even though I broke a gold medal… I have to put that behind me to get ready for the next race… I had to make sure that I was eating the right amount, sleeping the right amount, my body is as fresh as I can possibly be… all the small things end up adding to the end result.”

Michael Phelps’ legendary medal run

Michael Phelps made his Olympic debut in Sydney in 2000 at the age of 15. He won his first Olympic medal in 2004 in Athens. Phelps broke the world record for the 400 meters individual medley, while also bagging gold medals for 200-meter individual medley and 100-meter butterfly. He became a fan favorite after the event.

However, Phelps became a legend of the sport at the 2008 Beijing Olympics. His magnificent run to eight medal wins in a single event remains unmatched. Phelps won each of the eight medals in either world or Olympic record time, adding to the magnitude of the achievement.

He landed gold medals in the 400-meter individual medley, 200-meter freestyle, 100-meter butterfly, 200-meter butterfly, 200-meter medley, 4x100 meters freestyle, 4x200 meters freestyle and 4x100 meters medley.

Michael Phelps went on to participate in two more Olympics before retiring as the most decorated Olympian in history.