PHELPS CASE

Image And Expectations

Michael Phelps is, without a doubt, the best swimmer in the history
of the Olympic Games. Does that mean he's supposed to be the best
role model too?

There are some who think it does, and they've been very vocal in
expressing their disapproval since a picture of Phelps inhaling from
a marijuana pipe appeared in Britain's News of the World.

There's no denying it was him. But then, he never tried to deny it.

"I engaged in behaviour which was regrettable and demonstrated bad
judgment," Phelps said in a statement. "For this, I am sorry. I
promise my fans and the public it will not happen again."

The fact the 23-year-old didn't lie or take the fifth was impressive;
he accepted responsibility and apologized for his actions. (We can't
help thinking politicians could learn a thing or two from the kid.)

But what should come of it? Do his fans and the public really have
the right to hold Phelps to a higher standard because he's a talented
athlete? Should he have to teeter atop a pedestal for the rest of his
life just because we lived vicariously through him during the Beijing
Games? And is it not presumptuous to assume we know him and his
values based on a few self-deprecating post-swim interviews in the press box?

If nothing else, people have a right to be disappointed. It's human
nature. We invested our time and admiration in this incredible young
man, and we had expectations that he could live up to the worship we
heaped upon him.

His sponsors are right to be disappointed, too. They offered him the
opportunity to make millions of dollars, and not just because he has
won 14 medals. It's because they sell an image, and Phelps bought
into it. At least, they thought he did. It was no surprise when
Kellogg's cancelled a deal with Phelps; he no longer fit the squeaky
clean bill for the iconic company.

It was also no surprise that USA Swimming suspended him for three
months and stopped his funding during that time. The organization
pretty much had to; anything less would have suggested the directors
think it's OK to walk around with a bong in your hands.

And yet -- doesn't Phelps have rights as well? The right to be young
and carefree, to experiment, to make bad choices, to do things that
kids who don't live in the glare of the spotlight get to do?

Few people remember that just a few months after the Athens Games in
2004 -- where Phelps won six gold and two bronze medals -- he pleaded
guilty to drunk driving. That was a serious crime; one that could
have killed someone. He made his apologies, he straightened up and
the world forgave him.

By comparison, bad judgment at a frat party seems trivial. So what if
Phelps couldn't live up to our high expectations. Most of us can't
live up to them either.