Is he a god?

Obviously Michael Phelps is the most prolific Olympian to ever dawn the red, white and blue. He has single-handily captured the attention of a nation and brought interest back into an event that had become ordinary at best. His accomplishments may never be matched, at least in an Olympic pool, and he will most certainly be referenced for the rest of our lifetimes anytime anyone speaks of swimming or the Olympics!

This only leaves the rest of us mortals wandering, “Is he a god?”

I do recall some pretty amazing things being said about other great athletes”

• Jim Thorpe, a native American, won both the decathlon and pentathlon, finished fourth in the high jump and seventh in the long jump at the Stockholm Olympics in 1912 before he led the US to victory over Sweden at baseball. Jim Thorpe was called an American Icon.

• Johnny Weissmuller is famous for being the first Hollywood Tarzan. In the nine years leading up to the 1928 Games, when he became the first man to retain the blue-ribband 100m freestyle title, Johnny Weissmuller never lost a race and established world records over 100, 200, 400 and 800 metres, taking standards into a new era. He won the Olympic final of the 100m in Paris, in an Olympic record of 59.0sec (Michael Phelps 100m Butterfly was 50.58 sec.) . When Weissmuller left the poolside, the crowd of 7,000 stood and chanted for him to reappear to take a bow. They did not sit down for several minutes, and only then when it was announced that he would return later in the day.

• After setting 5 world records and equalling 1, in a  span of 45 minutes, at the 1935 NCAA championships and winning 4 Gold Medals at the 1936 Olympics in Berlin, Jesse Owens was called, “An Olympic Hero and an American Hero”. It was thought that no one would ever equal what Jesse Owens was able to accomplish.

These were quite remarkable feats by three very different individuals from very different times and cultures. But there is a common thread that I am sure each one of these would exchange, if they could. The prejudices of society, poor choices and time led to very similar ends for each athlete:

• Jim Thorpe was stripped of all his medals after admitting to being paid $25 a week for playing baseball in his boyhood. He never rebounded. In 1953 he died of a heart attack without a penny to his name.
• Johnny Weissmueller was the most winning-est swimmer of his time. And though he played Tarzan in 11 movies over the course of 16 years, his multi-million dollar fortune was squandered away through 5 failed marriages and several misleading business partners. He died at age 79 in 1984…without a penny to his name.
• Jesse Owens, despite capturing the admiration of hate-filled Germany in 1936 and being dubbed the ‘ebony antelope’, died of lung cancer in 1980 after 35 years of smoking. He died broke. However, much of that was due to the prejudices of his time. He struggled to find acceptance his entire life in the country for which he competed, but the country that he competed against never lost their affection for him. Four years after he died, a street was named for him in Berlin.

All of these athletes shared similar successes and all shared similar fates. They were seen as super human in their time. Many revered them in the company of the mythical gods which were so prevalent in the birthplace of the Olympics…Athens, Greece.

Michael Phelps is truly special. I do not hope this type of future for him or anyone else. But even if he is fabulously prosperous for the rest of his life, even if he wins 16 more Gold Medals and earns countless endorsements and makes millions of dollars…even if he is revered as an Olympic god by tens-of-thousands of adoring fans….the end will always be the same. Mortality. It’s inevitable.

Nonetheless, congratulations Michael Phelps. Your achievements have inspired me. They have inspired me to try harder. Do better. Push farther. They have reminded me of the Bible passage in Philippians 3:13-14 which tells me to push forward toward the prize in life, which is not a medal, but a relationship with Jesus Christ. Why? Because Jesus, the One who is awarded the eternal gold, the One who will be proclaimed the King of Kings is our only lasting reward in life.

Be Happy!

Bryan