Ok, I admit it, I've never heard the guy talk before so maybe this is just how he normally is, but I read this article on Yahoo and was just amazed at how arrogant and whiny this guy is.
Spitz, once the star, upset over Beijing snub - Yahoo! News (http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20080811/en_afp/oly2008swimusaspitz)

Sure, he should have been invited to the Olympics, but man, seriously, take a pill, sit back and just watch the games from your EZ chair because obviously people don't want to see you (at least if he is ALWAYS this arrogant!).

<!-- end storyhdr --> HONG KONG (AFP) - US swim legend Mark Spitz won't be on hand in BeijingMichael Phelps breaks his record of seven gold medals at a single Olympics -- because, he says, no one bothered to invite him.
<script language="javascript">if(window.yzq_d==null)window.yzq_d=new Object(); window.yzq_d['XK3lH9j8fbw-']='&U=13fa290vh%2fN%3dXK3lH9j8fbw-%2fC%3d674272.12804985.13083877.1442997%2fD%3dLREC%2fB%3d5406809%2fV%3d1'; </script><noscript>http://us.bc.yahoo.com/b?P=_aAkekWTVvoEjuofQnK2MhJHQ6hP40igiBcACnOK&T=19s9ume1s%2fX%3d1218480151%2fE%3d96836903%2fR%3dnews%2fK%3d5%2fV%3d2.1%2fW%3dH%2fY%3dYAHOO%2fF%3d309065011%2fH%3dY2FjaGVoaW50PSJuZXdzIiBjb250ZW50PSJnb2xkO09seW1waWNzO25ldHdvcms7SXQ7aXQ7aG9tZTtyZWZ1cmxfd3d3X3lhaG9vX2NvbSIgcmVmdXJsPSJyZWZ1cmxfd3d3X3lhaG9vX2NvbSIgdG9waWNzPSJyZWZ1cmxfd3d3X3lhaG9vX2NvbSI-%2fQ%3d-1%2fS%3d1%2fJ%3dFC519345&U=13fa290vh%2fN%3dXK3lH9j8fbw-%2fC%3d674272.12804985.13083877.1442997%2fD%3dLREC%2fB%3d5406809%2fV%3d1</noscript>
Spitz said the International Olympic Committee, a US television network or FINA -- the international body that governs world swimming -- should have brought him to the Games this year, with Phelps making a go at his record.
"I never got invited. You don't go to the Olympics just to say, I am going to go. Especially because of who I am," Spitz told AFP in Hong Kong.
"I am going to sit there and watch Michael Phelps break my record anonymously? That's almost demeaning to me. It is not almost -- it is."
Spitz became one of the most famous athletes in the world at the 1972 Munich Olympics, winning seven gold medals -- with seven world records -- in what many consider to be one of the greatest achievements in all of sport.

Phelps is aiming to better that mark in Beijing, hoping to bring home eight golds. And Spitz, now 58 and grey and without his trademark moustache, cannot understand why he wasn't asked along to see the show.
"They voted me one of the top five Olympians in all time. Some of them are dead. But they invited the other ones to go to the Olympics, but not me," he said. "Yes, I am a bit upset about it."

Now a stockbroker and motivational speaker, Spitz also thinks he could have won eight golds himself in Munich if only he had had the chance.
"I won seven events. If they had the 50m freestyle back then, which they do now, I probably would have won that too," he said.
Spitz, whose brief stint in show business in the 1970s never quite matched his success in the pool, said he attended the Athens Olympics four years ago -- when Phelps also tried to break the record.

"They did not once put my face on television," he recalled. "But as soon as the swimming was over, and Michael Phelps didn't break my record, every time I went to beach volley, they put my face on the volleyballs."

Spitz said it would have been a great idea if he could be the one presenting the gold medals to Phelps, who has for years been candid about his ambition to eclipse the mark of seven golds.
And Spitz thinks Phelps will succeed -- for one very good reason.
"He's almost identical to me. He's a world-record holder in all these events, so he is dominating the events just like I did," Spitz said. "He reminds me of myself."




OK, I picture my 6 year old stomping her feet on the floor with her arms crossed and her lower lip out crying, "But I wanted to go! It's not fair!!"


Don't get me wrong, the guy rocked at swimming, but for me it's all lost in this tantrum he's throwing.

agreed

The guy has always been a prima donna from what I understand.

BOLDED FOR EMPHASIS!

BOLDED FOR EMPHASIS!

LOL I did that more for my own reference - I was amazed at just HOW many times the guy talked about HIMSELF! ;)

Well, he should have been invited. He should have a standing invitation to every Olympics for the rest of his life.

I don't think he should be bitching about it though.

It seems likely to me, as it should have to Spitz, that it probably was not an oversight that he wasn't invited, and that by complaining as he does above plays pretty much right into the hands of the folks who wanted to make him feel that way. You know, if there is a conspiracy, as opposed to folks being focused on the athletes of today instead of the athletes from nearly four decades ago. Sure, it would be a neat gesture, but if the guy comes off this way in print, I can see how he may have ruffled some U.S.A. Swimming feathers between then and now.

Well, he should have been invited. He should have a standing invitation to every Olympics for the rest of his life.

I don't think he should be bitching about it though.

+1

I was hoping this would be a Dr. Seuss story.

'Cry Baby Spits was an unhappy boy,
for his birthday he got a whobingabong toy.
It's bonging gave his ears fits,
and it's binging reminded him of Jenny Mcfitz.'

Would it have been nice to invite him? Sure. I don't necessarily think it is a requirement.

How cool would it have been for Spitz to go to the Olympics on his own accord for the sake of supporting Phelps? He would have gotten the attention he so desperately wants AND would have come off as a good guy.

If he'd added the 50 free and won 8, then Phelps would be going for 9. It's not like these are the only 8 events that Phelps excels at. He could easily add the 100 free, 100 back, or 200 back to his schedule, and he certainly would've done that if that was the mark he was going after.

Would it have been nice to invite him? Sure. I don't necessarily think it is a requirement.

How cool would it have been for Spitz to go to the Olympics on his own accord for the sake of supporting Phelps? He would have gotten the attention he so desperately wants AND would have come off as a good guy.


Exactly. Spitz wants a free ride to the Olympics. Why didn't he bring this up sooner instead of waiting until the Olympics were in progress? Because he's an attention whore.

If he'd added the 50 free and won 8, then Phelps would be going for 9. It's not like these are the only 8 events that Phelps excels at. He could easily add the 100 free, 100 back, or 200 back to his schedule, and he certainly would've done that if that was the mark he was going after.If he was a favorite to win in any of those, why didn't he add one of them instead of the 4x100 free relay? It took a borderline miracle for him to win gold there.

Spitz makes some good points but comes off the worse for it, maybe he should have just kept it to himself.

He was interviewed on the local sports radio station a couple weeks back. Came off as a total dick, didn't want to talk about Phelps, only wanted to plug Botox.

If he was a favorite to win in any of those, why didn't he add one of them instead of the 4x100 free relay? It took a borderline miracle for him to win gold there.

The relay is a bit easier for him because he doesn't have to swim in the preliminaries, alowing him to focus on his other events.

Nice to see Spitz acting pretty classy here as his record may fall....

BEIJING (AP) - His Olympics looking lost, Michael Phelps decided to flap those gangly arms one more time. Milorad Cavic, inches from spoiling it all, glided along just under the surface, convinced he had won gold. But it didn't matter who was fastest. Just first.
Phelps swam into history with a magnificent finish Saturday, tying Mark Spitz with his seventh gold medal by the narrowest of margins in the 100-meter butterfly.
One-hundredth of a second, the time it takes lightning to strike the ground.
Whew!
"Dream as big as you can dream and anything is possible," Phelps said. "I am sort of in a dream world. Sometimes I have to pinch myself to make sure it is real."
Call it the Great Haul of China - and it's not done yet. Phelps has one more race on Sunday, which will likely complete his coronation as the greatest Olympian ever.
Spitz already ceded the title.
"It goes to show you that not only is this guy the greatest swimmer of all time and the greatest Olympian of all time, he's maybe the greatest athlete of all time," said the icon of the 1972 Munich Games. "He's the greatest racer who ever walked the planet."
The finish was so close the Serbian delegation filed a protest and swimming's governing body had to review the tape down to the 10-thousandth of a second.
Phelps thought he lost - until he saw the "1" beside his name on the scoreboard.
"When I did chop the last stroke, I thought that had cost me the race," he said. "But it was actually the opposite. If I had glided, I would have been way too long. I took short, faster strokes to try to get my hand on the wall. I ended up making the right decision."
Phelps' time was 50.58 seconds, the only time in these Olympics that he won an event without breaking the world record.
Not to worry. The 23-year-old from Baltimore has now pulled even with the greatest of Olympic records.
"One word: epic," Spitz told The Associated Press from Detroit. "I'm so proud of what he's been able to do. I did what I did and it was in my day in those set of circumstances. For 36 years it stood as a benchmark. I'm just pleased that somebody was inspired by what I had done. He's entitled to every second of what's occurring to him now.


I cut off the article, here is the full thing.
hxxp://apnews.myway.com/article/20080816/D92JEFCG0.html

Wtf. Its just swimming. Yeah he's amazing but nowhere near the grayest olympian. There are way too many events and the fact that one dude can win so many shows how similar they are

Wtf. Its just swimming. Yeah he's amazing but nowhere near the grayest olympian. There are way too many events and the fact that one dude can win so many shows how similar they are

The grayest olympian?

Maybe he has gray pubes like path?

Wtf. Its just swimming. Yeah he's amazing but nowhere near the grayest olympian. There are way too many events and the fact that one dude can win so many shows how similar they are

Semi-agree. I just read earlier about some woman from some country (she made a great impression on me so I made sure to remember he name and nationality ;)) that won a gold in Athens for rowing, and is now trying to win a gold in cycling. That is pretty damn impressive to me.

When did the standard change? Mark Spitz was voted one of the five greatest olympians ever for his achievements. Phelps has equaled and may top him. That should make him one of the top five at least.

Damn blackberry typing strikes again.

Phelps is obviously the greatest swimmer ever. But I would think most people know that the rest of the Olympic events are just filler until track and field starts.

Come on, Jim Craig, end of discussion.

Wtf. Its just swimming. Yeah he's amazing but nowhere near the grayest olympian. There are way too many events and the fact that one dude can win so many shows how similar they are

Yeah, but he did better than every other swimmer in the history of the Olympics, all of whom had the same advantages of "similar events." So when you take what he did compared to others swimmers and compare it with what other athletes have done compared to previous accomplishments in their events, then yes he is one of the greatest Olympians. What he did is the equivalent of someone winning 5 Gold medals in Track & Field.

I knew the evanual backlash would come because of all the hype he received before and after his accomplishment, but if Phelps isn't one of the greatest Olympians ever, then we're just pretending to have a rational discussion.

Once again, it's just swimming and there are an out of control amount of gold medals for the sport. There are not enough similar type events in track and field to win 5 gold medals. With all the heats, specialization, etc, there's almost no way it would be possible. Lewis winning 4 was special enough, and he didn't even compete vs the Russians.

Once again, crap like swimming and diving is just a sideshow before the track and field(aka the true Olympics) start.

i agree with spitz

Once again, it's just swimming and there are an out of control amount of gold medals for the sport.

Because that advantage only applied to Michael Phelps and not any other swimmer in the history of the Olympics? Gotcha.

There are not enough similar type events in track and field to win 5 gold medals. With all the heats, specialization, etc, there's almost no way it would be possible.

The heats and specialization also apply to Phelps. And people said 8 wouldn't be possible for Phelps. I think 5 could be doable for T&F....

100
200
4x100
4x400
Long Jump

Of course it would take a phenomenal athlete to do it. Someone on the level of, say, Michael Phelps.

You can't include Long Jump and then say its like the level of Phelps. That'd be like Phelps doing his swimming and then throwing in diving.

True, but let's not forget that Phelps had to swim each of the different strokes in swimming. To other people's point, in an era of specialization, the reason why he was able to compete for so many golds is because he is good at every stroke. He swam the backstroke, the freestyle, breaststroke, and the butterfly in reaching those 8 medals. He also was the top swimmer in two of those strokes, the butterfly and freestyle.

Spitz reached his medal count in only two strokes.

You can't include Long Jump and then say its like the level of Phelps. That'd be like Phelps doing his swimming and then throwing in diving.

Nah, I don't agree with that. Diving is a completely different discipline which uses different skills than swimming, whereas the long jump uses some different skills, but is still heavily reliant on ability to accelerate.

But if you think it'd be more fair, I could throw in the hurdle events or the 400 individual. I put in the Long Jump because that would be easier to accomplish, since it has been done at least twice.

Once again, crap like swimming and diving is just a sideshow before the track and field(aka the true Olympics) start.

Even with the incredible amount of doping in track&field over the years (before cycling surpassed them)?

Even with the incredible amount of doping in track&field over the years (before cycling surpassed them)?

Every sport dopes. And in track and Field it's damned dissapointing. Although pretty much everyone who doped in Track was fuckin Marion Jones. She must have had an Winstrol coated vagina or something.

What Phelps did was impressive, give him his props. As for Spitz...I don't know that I'd want to be there in person to watch someone shatter my record.

To equal the amount of swimming medals in addition to the traditional front run, bring in the backward run and the sideways criss-cross run.

To equal the amount of swimming medals in addition to the traditional front run, bring in the backward run and the sideways criss-cross run.

lol, I posted pretty much the same thing the other day, and then edited it out cause I thought I would be the only one with that type of idea.

Backward run! I'd be in for that.

Don't forget the rope run that they do in football practices. Lots of opportunities for people to fall on their face = great Olympic event.