Phelps swam very well in the Long Beach Grand Prix but this will mark his second absence from the USA Swimming Grand Prix series. I hope we are not seeing an "Ian Thorpe" retirement "sequel" in the making? It's unlikely but missing two races he promised to attend is definitely a "red flag."Ian Thorpe retired at the age of 24 presumably due to burn-out issues after achieving everything he could with the body he had. Michael Phelps, also 24-years, may have some similarities to Ian Thorpe:
From Wikipedia:
Thorpe returned to competition at the New South Wales Championships in December 2005. He raced in the 200 m and stated his intention to retire after the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing. Thorpe announced that due to a desire to concentrate on the 100 m freestyle, he had dropped his pet event, the 400 m. [...] In February, Thorpe qualified for the 2006 Commonwealth Games by winning the 100 m and 200 m freestyle in times of 49.24 s and 1 min 46.42 s respectively. He expressed disappointment with his performances; he speculated that he may have misjudged his new training schedule and anticipated further improvement.
Soon after, Thorpe announced his withdrawal from the Commonwealth Games due to a bout of bronchitis, which had stopped him from training. Thorpe's illness was later diagnosed as a strain of glandular fever, and after a further delay caused by a broken hand, he moved to the United States in July to work with Dave Salo. Further disruption followed when the Australian switched coaches, citing excessive and ongoing media attention. Thorpe's stay was constantly surrounded by rumours that he was suffering from ill discipline; this fueled speculation that his international career was on the decline.
Upon his return to Australia, Thorpe withdrew from the selection trials for the 2007 World Championships and announced his retirement on 21 November 2006. Thorpe said that he had been contemplating retirement for some time, but was afraid of the future because swimming had given him a "safety blanket". Thorpe stated that he retired despite reaching higher levels of fitness, noting "As I got fit, physically fit, my mind also got fit". He said a clear mind allowed him to reach his decision. He was close to tears when thanking the Australian public, but declared that his retirement was a "joyous" occasion of celebration. [...]
Photo credit: Creative Commons: Originally posted to Flickr as Michael Phelps wins 8th gold medal by Bryan Allison. Thank you Bryan!
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From Universal Sports:
Phelps had been entered in six events: 100m breaststroke [...]
The Columbus Grand Prix, a new meet on the USA Swimming schedule, can be seen live on Universal Sports TV and UniversalSports.com at 6 p.m. ET, Thursday-Saturday.
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