"It’s awkward signing a body" - When Michael Phelps opened up about dealing with strange request during fan interaction

Michael Phelps once opened up about some of the unusual fan interactions he experienced throughout his career. Phelps enjoyed an unparalleled swimming career with 28 Olympic medals and multiple world championship titles, and world records.

With each successful meet, the American swimmer was gaining more fans. However, the fame also brought a few unusual experiences, which included awkward autograph requests and prank calls at his hotels. In his memoir 'Michael Phelps: Beneath the Surface,' originally published in 2004, the former swimmer reflected on one such incident.

"I was starting to get more requests for interviews when I went to swim meets. The autograph requests began picking up, too. One day a girl asked me to sign her shirt and there was a slight problem: she was still in it. I asked her to turn around and I signed the back. I’ve had a few other requests like that since then. It’s awkward signing a body. I don’t know what lines to cross; what’s okay, what’s inappropriate."

He also reflected on the moment when he started receiving prank calls from kids in the hotels who would later brag about their conversation with him. To avoid this, Phelps began using a fake name while checking into hotels.

In 2002, I began taking some crank calls in my hotel rooms when I would travel to meets," he added. "So early that year for the first time I started registering under a different name in order to avoid those calls."

When Michael Phelps opened up about the media's effect on his training

Michael Phelps at the 2025 SheBelieves Cup in Glendale, Arizona. (Photo by Getty Images)

Michael Phelps once opened up on how the increasing media engagements started affecting his training schedule. In his memoir, he reflected on how, as he rose to the peak during his swimming career, the media engagements were filled with interviews, photo shoots, and coverage for major newspapers and TV channels.

"We did cover shoots for Sports Illustrated, SI Kids and Time, and I gave long interviews to The New York Times, Washington Post, Chicago Tribune and USA Today. The local paper, The Baltimore Sun, was writing stories almost daily," Phelps wrote. "Even on a day I wouldn’t give interviews, there would be stories in the local papers and on the Baltimore TV stations. All along, we had to ask, “Was the media exposure adversely affecting my training?”

Michael Phelps and his longtime coach Bob Bowman decided to accept only high-priority engagements, and that too in the afternoons, so that the swimmer's schedule wasn't disturbed.