OT?: Michigan (USA Olympic) Swimmer Clary not a Phelps fan
Well looks like Tyler Clary isn't impressed with Micheal Phelps. I can't say that his opinion is wrong, just not sure this is the best time/forum to voice an opinion.
http://sports.yahoo.com/blogs/olympics-fourth-place-medal/first-time-ol…
...he's too busy hearing his gold medals clink together.
Just some guy trying to make a name for himself by being the anti something. I mean, really, how much better could Phelps have done? Are they offering a Platinum medal now? Yeah, he doesn't have the drive he once did. But really everything he does at this point is gravy to the legend. He's past his prime, and just trying to add to the total, not set any new standards. He already did that.
Exactly, Phelps put everything humanly possible into the 2008 games and his goal of 8 golds there. I would have wanted some easy time off for a year or two after that too and he certainly earned it. If the trials are any indication he's certainly put in a good chunk of work recently to get where he is, especially for someone at his age in competitive swimming.
On the other hand, I had no idea who this guy was until today. I suppose he's made a name for himself if that was his goal.
I doubt making a name for himself was the reason he talked to his local paper. Read my comment further down the page, but don't judge Clary without at least reading the original article, rather than an ESPN article mis-representing his comments to create drama and get hits.
Actually, it was Yahoo: not ESPN. The quotes are not misrepresented, nor are they taken out of context. Clary is jealous of Phelps because he perceives Phelps as not working as hard as he does but getting better results. Sorry, but this comes off as petty and spiteful, and I truly doubt that he learned how to act like that at the University of Michigan.
Clary needs to learn when to say what to whom. He also needs to beat Phelps before he rags on Phelps' work ethic again. Phelps knows exactly what he needs to do to drag one more great Olympics out of his body. Clary has no business judging the work ethic of someone who has won the most gold medals in Olympic history.
Also, Phelps competes in eight events. It's not like he needs the extra practice time. He knows exactly how much energy he needs to expend to maximize his performance. Clary really needs to apologize here and be a team player.
Yeah, at some point picking on a guy who has done more in your sport than ANYONE in history because he's bored reflects more on your own immaturity than Phelps. He'll move on to whatever swimmers do after the Olympics with a couple of more medals, and no one will remember Clary except as the guy who Phelps had to listen to as he left the pool.
is whipping your ass, do not give them more reason to continue to do so. Mr. Clary just needs to take care of his own side of the street.
Mr Clary should ask Ian Thorpe about the result when only perceived of saying something negative about Michael Phelps. Four years ago, it was used as motivation to win 8 gold medals.
Whiny little !@#ch!
athlete who is competing in the Olympics. I'm sure hitting the water with an attitude like that is a sure-fire formula for success.
I wouldn't say I am necessarily a fan of Phelps but it is pretty hard not to recognize what an amazing athlete the man is. To be clear, by not a fan I simply mean I'm indifferent, not that I don't like him. The man is a beast and I hope he breaks more records.
Oh, HEEEERE we go again!
You're not a fan because he's from the US, right????
Sheesh!
:-)
As a Canadian you recognize the greatness of Phelps in an historical context...but I still cheer for the random Canadian in his heat to make the final.
Boy, does he come off sounding like a punk. Newsflash: Swimming at the Olympics is about who is the fastest. The clock at the end of the race doesn't give a rip whether that speed came from talent, or hard work, or some combination of the two.
When they have an Olympics for "trying hard" give me a call.
If only they gave points for heart.
Might be just some historic personality clash issues.
Yah, a clash between a winner and a whiner.
we talkin' 'bout practice??
ha beat me to it.
Not a fan of publicly calling people / teammates out, but maybe good will come from this?
That is a bunch of pathetic comments from someone who is obviously upset hes nowhere near as good as Phelps. I also don't understand how you "can't say his opinion is wrong." Phelps won 8 gold medals at the last Olympics and has set how many world records. What more could he possibly accomplish if he "worked as hard as I [Clary] do." Obliterate the world records by 2.1 seconds instead of 1.8 seconds?
I was simply statings I couldn't say if Phelps worked out as hard or not. Not that Clary was right in bashing Phelps.
Click through to the actual article--he's definitely disappointed but not nearly bitter the way the blog writer wants you to think.
Those aren't the wisest comments from Clary, but it's more the ESPN blog writer being a dick than it is Clary (fair notice that I knew Clary very slightly from his time at Michigan). Clary is fairly outspoken and hasn't hidden the fact that he wasn't a huge fan of Phelps long before the 400 IM loss, so suggesting this is just sour grapes is intentionally untrue. And he didn't "rip" Phelps as badly as the author suggests, his comments are more saying that he didn't want to emulate Phelps at Michigan and why that was the case.
As a few examples of the author being intentionally misleading: he automatically dismisses Clary's comments about Phelps' work ethic because "it's no secret that Phelps made a conscious decision to take it easy after the 2009 world championships" even though that's clearly not the time frame that's being discussed.
The author cites Clary's "delusions of grandeur" without any evidence except trying to write an outrageous column and says he's "just another guy" despite the fact that Clary has broken world records that Phelps set. He ignores Clary's open introspection about the 400 IM loss because that simply wouldn't fit the bitter narative he's created. Clary's comments weren't wise but they were couched by citing that Phelps could have been even been better, not that Phelps didn't deserve what he got.
The author also notes that Clary's best international finishes were when Phelps wasn't competing but says that he "was booted to third place" in the Olympic trials without noting that Clary was fighting a viral infection.
And he takes Clary's quote that "I work my (butt) off all the time. That's not to say that everybody else doesn't." and writes that "well, that's exactly what you're saying" but . . . no, it's not what he's saying at all. Saying that most people work really hard and that one person doesn't is not contradictory in the slightest.
I completely agree. I know Tyler Clary, both from Michigan and his swim club out here, and I met Michael Phelps a few times in college (and I know others who have as well).
Clary is a great guy. Phelps is a total punk. I know this article doesn't show that. But everyone on here knows who Michael Phelps is and probably knows little about Tyler Clary which is why Phelps seems to be getting the back up.
Michael Phelps is an absolute dick who most people in the swimming world can't stand (except people who only watch the Olympics - they love him). M fans like him because he "went to Michigan" but didn't really and bailed when his coach did.
Phelps is an absolute prick, and I like that Clary has the balls to call it like it is. Michael Phelps is the Lebron James of swimming - physically he's the best, maybe ever, but you hate everything else about him. I'll be cheering for Clary to beat his ass in London.
He said he doesn't work hard enough and should be better. Which comes off as sour grapes when you don't beat him, and have to explain how he could have done better than 8 gold medals at the Olympics. (Should he have run track, too?)
And yes, guess what- swimming is one of a multitude of sports that people only care about when it's at the Olympics. Deal with it. No one made him get in the pool. He wants the acclaim, shut up and win some medals in a few weeks, and everyone will care who he is too.
The guy wants to attack his personality, go at it, though I'm not sure who it serves particularly well. You want to attack the job he's done...well come close to being near as good before you say anything to the press. WolvinLA2 can say it on a posting board, but to bring it up as another Olympic athlete to someone in the media just makes one look dumb.
Maybe it's gone a little overboard. But posts like your previous one seem to be defending the statement, not just the guy. I think if whatever Michigan player says something dumb, we don't defend what they said just because they played for Michigan. However, you're right, it shouldn't tar and feather their whole character or being for something dumb said, and then highlighted for effect by the media. But I think if people had come off more "he shouldn't have said it, and he probably realizes it now...he isn't that media savvy yet" would have done more for his defense than "yeah, Phelps is an ass, he deserved it."
Sounds more like envy to me, I mean I can hardly blame him if he works as hard as he states he does only to lose to a guy that hasn't wanted to touch the water since 2008.
Salieri deal here. And none of us would know much about Salieri if he hadn't made a movie--I mean, had a movie made about him. (My bad.)
It's like hating on someone because they're beautiful. And stuff.
This is a lose/lose for Clary; beating Phelps is only really going to be supersized stuff in HIS eyes. Phelps already pocketed the glory.
who played Salieri's confessor in the movie. Imagine what Salieri told him in the out-takes.
What was that supposed to be an inference about? Phelps only swam at Michigan cause his long time coach was coaching the Michigan team, not because he was aligned with Michigan. Now that his coach is back in Baltimore, he is back in Baltimore. This is a matter between two Olympian swimmers, and not anything to do with Michigan.
That he wasn't the coaches #1 priority? I can certainly believe it, but that seems to be a bold statement to make about a Michigan coach.
But beyond that, I still don't see why it is a big deal that Phelps got more attention than Clay, simply due tot he fact that Phelps has 13 gold and Clay has none. Not trying to knock clay, but how many members of the swim team can I or you name? The only people that can name any are either swimmers, or otherwise aquianted with people on the swim team. Same for members on the vast majority of Michigan athletics, with the exception of the big sports like basketball, football, and hockey.
I will admit that my personal interactions with Phelps while he was on campus did not exactly improve my opinion of his personality. Fantastic swimming notwithstanding, he wasn't the sort of person I'd try to be friends with. Not that this in any way justifies the comments, but I can sort of understand why he might want to make them.
Phelps has 16 OLY's so I am pretty sure he knows what his body can/can't do in regards to swimming. Clary should stick to his own training and support his teammate who happens to be the greatest swimmer in history. Now he has just made himself look like an ass, intentional or not.
Read the whole article. I bet the question that prompted the "money quote" was something along the lines of:
"What do you think of Michael Phelps not going through a complete preparation for the 2012 Olympics like he did in 2008? Does that cause resentment among fellow swimmers?"
Hell, the rest of the article almost admits that the real sentiment behind the quote was that.
Someone doesn't like some famous guy.
Phelps fucked someone else's girlfriend again.
Tyler dated a friend of mine and he was a ass when I met him. Seems like he hasn't changed much.