Michael Phelps and Ryan Lochte condemn American swimming: "We'll call it a funeral or a new beginning."
With two days left until the World Swimming Championships close, the criticism has already begun to hit the United States. To date, the Americans are tied with Australia at the top of the medal table for gold medals (five) and have collected 20 medals in total, including ten silvers. They already saw their dominance threatened at the Paris Olympics, having been recaptured in the final relay of the competition. But in Singapore, the relays aren't bringing the glory they once had.
These barbs come from the two most important swimmers in the country's history, leaving aside Mark Spitz in the 70s and Katie Ledecky, who is still active and will compete in the 800m freestyle final this Saturday. Ryan Lochte delivered the message, and Michael Phelps joined him. Between them, over their long careers, they won 60 World Championship medals.
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Ryan Lochte shares an image of a tombstone and a funeral, with people dressed in black in the background, and a clearly legible message: "We'll call it a funeral or a new beginning." On the tombstone, he references the 45 golden years of American swimming, from 1980 to 2025, and adds, "A fond memory to American swimming."
Phelps shared the story of his friend and classmate and added his own commentary. "Is this the wake-up call swimming needs? Let's find out," added the American, winner of 28 Olympic medals.
Will this be the wake-up call swimming needs? We'll see. Michael Phelps Former American swimmer, Olympic king
Relays are always a barometer. In the five that have been held, the United States missed out on medals in the men's 4x200, finished third in the 4x100 freestyle, and took two silvers in the women's 4x200 and 4x100. For the first time, they failed to reach the final of the mixed 4x100 medley.
Gold medals went to Kate Douglass in the 200 breaststroke, Katie Ledecky in the 1,500, Katherine Berkhoff in the 50 backstroke, Gretchen Walsh in the 100 butterfly, and Luca Urlando in the 200 butterfly. In events like the men's backstroke, the United States barely scraped by.
Read alsoBefore the start of the championships, the technical management, which has undergone changes in recent years, announced that part of the team had suffered food poisoning in Thailand, the pre-competition training camp.
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