Bolt or Phelps?

[D-Backs Hack]

From the latest Jemele Hill thread ...

And the genuine feeling that Bolt is the sensation of the Olympics is merely white guilt :

Really? Bolt's THE sensation of the Olympics?

Michael Phelps has something to say about that. Or have you forgotten abotu his exploits so soon?

I go with Bolt.

He literally was electrifying.

Phelps gave me the feel of dominance in one of his races. And, at best, he tied at the end of another. And he was wearing the Harry Potter magic suit, so his setting any World Record is bogus to me. Swimming was an embarrassment this Olympics because of those suits and how they totally wiped the slate in a single Games.

Bolt.

Bolt gets my vote, too.

Don't penalize him because he doesn't compete in as many events.

If it was possible to lap the field in those sprints, he did it.

I'm surprised there hasn't been a thread started on this very topic.

... So, as a result, I'm gonna start a thread.

OK, who was The Man at the Olympics?

As I posted previously, if I have to choose one, I pick Bolt.

However, if the Phelps-Stephanie Rice rumors are true, I might reconsider.

 

[GB-Hack]

Both did, I believe, unprecedented things. Bolt not only winning the 100 and 200, but setting WRs in both.

Phelps and the great eight.

As electrifying as Bolt was, and as cool as I thought his celebration at the end of the 100 was, I still have to say Phelps.

We may never see someone win eight gold medals ever again.

 

[sportschick]

Phelps

 

[Dickens Cider]

Ditka

 

[Trey Beamon]

BYH

 

[TheSportsPredictor]

Phelps, but not by much.

 

[Bubbler]

Since I'm supposed to care, 9-year-old Chinese gymnasts.

Seriously, Phelps is the only person I made a point to watch.

 

[Beaker]

Bolt by a smidge.

 

[joe_schmoe]

Bolt's ridiculousness of ease made it easy for me to forget about Phelps .0000001 second (or whatever it was) win. Next week, I will have forgotten about them both, but I think track athletes tend to have longer lasting appeal.

 

[Inky_Wretch]

Phelps, because 8>3 and his events were shown live in (most of) the USA.

 

[Bubbler]

Bolt's ridiculousness of ease made it easy for me to forget about Phelps .0000001 second (or whatever it was) win. Next week, I will have forgotten about them both, but I think track athletes tend to have longer lasting appeal.

I've forgotten them already. Are we talking about Ken Phelps?

 

[buckweaver]

Alvin Davis.

Anyway, my vote is for Phelps. Spitz's 7 golds was the unbreakable Olympic standard of my lifetime. And Phelps pulled it off. (Oh, and say what you want about the Superman suits, but he did win six golds in '04 without 'em. I think he's plenty good on his own.)

 

[luckyducky]

Even with my track-town roots, Phelps in a landslide.

Maybe if Bolt hadn't been such a showman about it (in the races/heats I saw), he would have a shot. But it's gotta be Phelps.

 

[joe_schmoe]

Even with my track-town roots, Phelps in a landslide.

Maybe if Bolt hadn't been such a showman about it (in the races/heats I saw), he would have a shot. But it's gotta be Phelps.

See, I'm not buying any of this showman crap. It's easy to pick on Bolt, but hell what do you call Phelps and the other Olympic relay swimmers after they flexed their muscles after beating the french?
How bout Phelps little splash in the pool?

I'm not calling that showboating, and I aint calling Bolt a showboat either. Easy to get on Bolt's case cuz he had all the open space and yeah maybe when he dominated the 100 and was chest pounding raising his arms before the finish line it could have been. Who's to say a swimmer wouldn't do the same if it were physically possible (not to mention the possibility of being DQed in some raises for improper stroke)?
You just don't see it in swimming as much, because the water kind of restricts your movements.
I have no problem with anyone picking Phelps over Bolt, but the showboating thing shouldn't be an issue.

 

[bostonbred]

I think it's Phelps by a healthy margin.

 

[Stoney]

I won't get into who's the better overall Olympian, but I can tell you Bolt caught my attention a lot more because I felt like I was seeing something new: a whole new level of athleticism we've never seen before.

Phelps I already knew about coming in. But Bolt I knew little about until I saw him run the hundred when he instantly seized my attention like few athletes ever have. This 6'5" freak of nature running the hundred far faster than any human ever has while looking like he was barely even trying the last 15 meters? One of the great "holy ****, who is this guy!" moments of my sports watching life. And then he only raised the astonishment with his 200 and relay performances.

Not taking anything from Phelps--8 golds is a staggering accomplishment--but I felt like I might be seeing one of those transformative moments when a sport is changed when Bolt ran.

 

[pallister]

What the swimmers did after the race ended was called celebrating. Celebrating. It's what people do when they win something. Now, if any of the swimmers had celebrated while still swimming, then you could make an argument, like ducky did with Bolt, that they were showboating.

 

[Beaker]

Not taking anything from Phelps--8 golds is a staggering accomplishment--but I felt like I was seeing one of those transformative moments when an entire sport changed when Bolt ran.

Indeed--he blew away Michael Johnson's record in the 200 as is, but he really would've obliterated it had he not been running into a headwind. That's something I didn't think I'd see happen.

 

[buckweaver]

but I felt like I was seeing one of those transformative moments when an entire sport changed when Bolt ran.

See, I felt exactly the opposite. I felt like Bolt was an absolute freak of nature -- just like Phelps, for that matter -- whose performance can't be replicated by anyone else in the sport.

A 6-5 guy running that fast? When will we ever see it again?

But transforming the sport? Absolutely not. When will we ever see it again?

 

[luckyducky]

Even with my track-town roots, Phelps in a landslide.

Maybe if Bolt hadn't been such a showman about it (in the races/heats I saw), he would have a shot. But it's gotta be Phelps.

See, I'm not buying any of this showman crap. It's easy to pick on Bolt, but hell what do you call Phelps and the other Olympic relay swimmers after they flexed their muscles after beating the french?
How bout Phelps little splash in the pool?

I'm not calling that showboating, and I aint calling Bolt a showboat either. Easy to get on Bolt's case cuz he had all the open space and yeah maybe when he dominated the 100 and was chest pounding raising his arms before the finish line it could have been. Who's to say a swimmer wouldn't do the same if it were physically possible (not to mention the possibility of being DQed in some raises for improper stroke)?
You just don't see it in swimming as much, because the water kind of restricts your movements.
I have no problem with anyone picking Phelps over Bolt, but the showboating thing shouldn't be an issue.

Ok, maybe showboating/showman isn't the right word/phrase...but why the hell couldn't Bolt have been bothered to finish running the damn race before celebrating? Cross the line (or even get within one stride), THEN celebrate. I see it as disrespectful.

It's different with the swimmers because they (as far as I've read/seen) didn't do it until *after* they won. You don't see the guys running the 800 or 5,000 pumping their fists on the final lap/turn, do you?