Michael Phelps

In Beijing, Michael Phelps won eight Olympic gold medals, and six in Athens before that. Last Saturday, Ryan Lochte beat Mr. Phelps convincingly in the 400-meter individual medley. Last Sunday, Mr. Phelps built a solid lead for Mr. Lochte in the 400-meter relay, and Mr. Lochte lost it and the race. And last Monday, a very fast French swimmer and two others relegated Mr. Lochte to fourth place in the 200-meter free style. Naturally, we wish him the very best, but it is now even clearer to everyone, including no doubt Mr. Lochte, how awesomely impressive Michael Phelps ' accomplishments are. The hype about "Lochte's time" is now in proper perspective: He will achieve some good, maybe even great results, but there simply has never been anybody like Michael Phelps . Bradley Alger, Baltimore

For folks who simply can't get enough Phelps this week, by all means splash down into this adorable Lego reanimation of Thursday's Olympic showdown made by London's The Guardian. The video short replays the action of the 200M individual medley where Michael Phelps claimed his first personal gold of the 2012 games. The creators not only managed to include all of the action in the pool, there's shots of Debbie Phelps and the Phelps sisters in the stands and even a little wink to the famous Michael Phelps breakfast.

The greatest Olympian of all time now apparently has a girlfriend, according to E Online. E Online reports Michael Phelps has been getting very cozy with a certain young woman Megan Rossee. The two were spotted out in London this weekend and Rossee tweeted this picture of the two of them siting quite close. According to E, she's a 25-year-old model from Los Angeles. But will he be bringing her back to Baltimore? Will she be grabbing a stool with him at Pete's Grille ?

The human fish from Rodgers Forge was not supposed to be the star of the 2012 London Olympics. American Ryan Lochte was expected to break out of Michael Phelps' shadow, and in the run-up to the games, one of Mr. Phelps' other teammates publicly criticized his work ethic. And when the games began, it looked like the doubters might be right. After his stunning, eight-gold-medal performance in Beijing in 2008, Michael Phelps looked flat and listless in his first final of the Games, the 400 individual medley, an event he had once dominated.

It was Jury Duty: Celebrity Edition in Baltimore Circuit Court on Tuesday. Both Michael Phelps and Duff Goldman had their numbers picked for the jury pool at the downtown courthouse. Phelps' presence created such a buzz that other prospective jurors and employees throughout the courthouse started streaming in to take his picture, according to Maj. Sam Cogen of the sheriff's office. “People were using their cell phones [to take pictures], bothering him - including police,” Cogen said.

Record-setting Olympic gold medalist Michael Phelps is scheduled to visit the Orioles' spring-training facility before Thursday's 1 p.m. intrasquad game at Ed Smith Stadium. Phelps is in town with renowned golf coach Hank Haney promoting their new show on The Golf Channel titled "The Haney Project. " The show focuses around Haney teaching the 22-time medalist the game of golf.   Phelps, the most decorated athlete in Olympic history, followed the Ravens during their run to the Super Bowl.

Michael Phelps has yet another achievement for his resume -- his face is on the front of the Wheaties box -- again. Wheaties announced Thursday that Phelps and fellow OlympianMisty May-Treanorwould be featured on the coveted front of the cereal box. It will be the second time Phelps represents the "breakfast of champions. " He was on the box after the 2004 Olympics. After the 2008 Olympics, however, he appeared on a different cereal box -- Corn Flakes and Frosted Flakes. The limited-edition Wheaties box featuring Phelps will be available beginning in September.

It's getting to be that Michael Phelps has as many magazine covers as medals. The latest? He's the cover model for Golf Digest's December issue. Last month the magazine wrote about Phelps sinking an incredible, 159-foot putt at the Dunhill Links in Scotland. The magazine estimated it might have been the longest putt ever televised. So he might just have earned that spot on the cover.  Phelps has been getting some attention for his swing as he studies with Hank Haney, an effort that will be televised on The Golf Channel's "The Haney Project" in February.

Michael Phelps may or may not be the best swimmer in the world -- fellow American Ryan Lochte has closed the gap since Beijing , though we have yet to see a focused Phelps -- but when it comes to getting paid to film commercials about swimming, no one can touch the 14-time Olympic gold medalist from Rodgers Forge. His latest commercial is for Speedo International, but thankfully, Phelps isn't actually wearing a Speedo. Instead, he walks down a pier on a gloomy day in Baltimore.

Michael Phelps surprised his best friend and roommate earlier this week by dropping into his poker match in Montreal. "Pumped for the kid today!!" Phelps Tweeted when he arrived at the World Poker Tour competition to support Jeff Gross. "Just surprised him for the final 6 of the #wptmontreal. " Phelps later said in an interview with WPT.com that he had to be there for his buddy. "Gotta support the kid," he told WPT. "Jeff has been my best friend for a long time. I know how excited he is about tonight.