Olympics: History Beckons As Phelps Makes Light of Medley Marathon

Anyone who doubted that Michael Phelps has a realistic chance of creating history at these Games already has their answer. The greatest Olympians rise to the big occasion and Phelps did so yesterday as he scooped up his first title of the competition, shattered a world record and safely came through a further qualifying heat. At this rate his place in the pantheon could be sealed as early as Wednesday morning when he threatens to overtake Carl Lewis, Mark Spitz, Larisa Latynina and Paavo Nurmi as the most prolific gold medalist in Olympic history.

Even though he qualified a modest fourth in the subsequent 200m freestyle, his opening salvo visibly rattled his rivals. One of the bigger obstacles to his quest for world domination in Beijing lay in the 400m individual medley, perhaps the most grueling race in his packed schedule. Even Phelps was nervous in advance, involuntary "chills" multiplying down his spine as he warmed up. When the moment came, however, he was swiftly back in greased-lightning mode, blitzing his own world record by the eye-watering margin of 1.41sec.

It was more than enough to harden the suspicion that Spitz's 36-year record of seven golds in a single Games (and tally of nine overall) is under terminal threat. Phelps picked up six last time around in Athens and, at this rate, will end up with more gold around his neck than P Diddy on a serious night out. For such a serial winner he was unusually emotional afterwards, and not just because he had exchanged smiling post-race nods with the watching US President George W Bush. Here was a man genuinely thrilled - "I can't express enough how excited I am to have started off with the time I posted in that event" - to have taken such a positive first stride towards his distant goal.

Some of his joy, admittedly, was the product of an early-morning deal brokered with his coach Bob Baldwin that he could retire from 400m medley competition if he broke the world record. "Hopefully I may not be swimming it again," he sighed, offering a rare glimpse into the backstage pain required to keep so many aquatic balls in the air simultaneously. As Fred Trueman once observed in a different context, some record-breaking feats require as much stamina as skill and Phelps already knows it. "I'll tell you what," said Fred, musing on whether anyone would surpass his then-record haul of Test wickets, "whoever does it will be bloody tired." Even a man with Phelps' freakishly long arm span will be feeling the strain by the time these Games are over.

For that reason, Phelps admits he cannot afford to dwell on yesterday's events for long. "I have to put that race behind me and act like it never happened," he insisted solemnly. "I've got so many tough races ahead of me." He did confess, however, to a twinge of anxiety around the 150 meter mark when he glanced up and saw his compatriot Ryan Lochte and the eventual silver medalist, Laszlo Cseh of Hungary, right with him. The upshot was the quickest breaststroke split-time of his career and a smooth freestyle finish which left the rest trailing in his porpoise-like wake.

The relentless champion was even smiling to himself as he turned for the final length, further proof that he senses almost anything is within his telescopic reach. Not only does he have another couple of feet of rippling torso where most mere mortals keep their love handles but he possesses the sort of innate confidence, not to mention close-cropped haircut, which the new England cricket captain Kevin Pieterson might recognize. "I think I'm as prepared as I can be at this moment," confirmed Phelps, safe in the knowledge he has blown his competitors out of the water before some of them have settled on their blocks.

"Any time you think you are close to reaching him he jumps to another level," complained Cseh. It could become a familiar lament in the coming days, regardless of a rare second-place finish in his 200m freestyle heat behind the ecstatic Dominik Meichtry of Switzerland. Phelps was suitably nonchalant afterwards - "I did everything I needed to do" - and stressed he had been saving himself for more serious tests, although he was subsequently spared from the 4 x 100m relay heats in which the US team set another new world record without him.

The flow of records inside the Water Cube continued relentlessly all day. Australia's Stephanie Rice followed Phelps' lead by setting a new world record en route to gold in the women's 400m individual medley - her first Olympic medal - with Britain's Hannah Miley finishing a creditable sixth. Korea's Park Tae-hwan achieved his country's first swimming gold in the 400m freestyle, Norway's Alexander Oen set a new Olympic record in the men's 100m backstroke and the Dutch women's 100m freestyle relay team did likewise. That meant a silver medal for the 41-year-old American Dara Torres, the oldest swimmer at these Games and a competitor who has been around long enough to recognize a "fast" pool when she sees one.