Michael Phelps is another in a long line of wannabe superstar athletes who seeks fame over magnitude and money over propriety.  Will
Phelps have the success in the marketplace like Mark Spitz?  No. 
Phelps is a robot without heart or emotion.  You may not like Spitz,
but at least he has a visible personality.


Phelps also has a
strange double-jointed body that allows him an advantage in the pool. 
Other athletes do not have that sort of curious disability, and so
Phelps is more carnival sideshow than beloved superstar.

Sure,
Phelps will always have a career in swimming, but he won’t be the next
Mark Spitz and he will certainly not reach the fame and glorious love
people still hold dear for former Olympians Bruce Jenner and Mary Lou
Retton.