The new things Michael Phelps pulled off last nite in Rio:

• First person to win 4 gold medals at 4 Olympic Games – 2004, 2008, 2012, 2016. Phelps was the only person to have done this 3 times. Nobody else has ever done it more than once.
• Won the 200 IM for the 4^th consecutive time. Only 3 other Olympians have won the same individual event 4 consecutive times – Paul Elvstrøm (DEN-SAI) in one-person dinghy sailing from 1948-60; Al Oerter (USA-ATH) in athletics discus throw from 1956-60; and Carl Lewis (USA-ATH) in athletics long jump from 1984-96). If you include the 1906 Olympics, this list also includes Ray Ewry (USA-ATH), who did it twice, in the standing high jump and standing long jump from 1900-08.
• Now has 22 Olympic gold medals and 26 medals. If he was an NOC, Phelps would stand 39^th on the list of most gold medals won, and 57^th on the list of most medals won.
• Only 23 NOCs have won as many gold medals at 4 consecutive Olympic Games as Phelps has.
• With 13 individual gold medals, Michael of Baltimore has broken the record held by Leonidas of Rhodes, who won 12 titles at the Ancient Olympics from 164-152 BCE, however …
• Some shadows have been cast on Leonidas’ records. Apparently the IOC has started to re-test the doping samples from 152 BC, and there is a rumor that Leonidas’ A Sample was positive. He is appealing this to the Αθλητικό Διαιτητικό Δικαστήριο.  More on this important story to come.