Phelps Overcomes Mishap, Triumphs in 100 Butterfly

ROME, Aug. 1 -- As if this whole week hadn't been enough of a headache for Michael Phelps entering Saturday's 100-meter butterfly final at the world swimming championships, Phelps broke his goggles on another swimmer's head during a head-to-head collision just more than an hour before the race.

With his brain already resounding from a week of taunts and challenges from his main rival, Serbia's Milorad Cavic, Phelps found himself with busted goggles across his forehead, blurred vision in his left eye, a sore left shoulder and a seriously panicked coach, who screamed "no!" as he saw the collision unfold. And then Bob Bowman summoned a doctor.

As it turned out, the only man in need of medical attention Saturday might have been Cavic, who once again got chased down from behind in a thriller of a final by Phelps, who won in 49.82 seconds, going 0.19 under the world record Cavic had set Friday night. With the crowd at the Foro Italico standing, stomping and thundering, Cavic was second in 49.95, also sliding under the world record of 50.01.

Phelps, fourth at the turn, charged past Cavic over the race's final meters.

"You can tell by my celebration that satisfied me a little bit," Phelps said. "I set it up perfectly. That was exactly what I wanted to do."

When Phelps saw he had won, he ripped off his swimcap, threw up his arms with defiance and tugged on the front of his old-model Speedo LZR swimsuit -- which he later admitted was a response to Cavic's offer Friday to buy Phelps a more technically advanced suit if he couldn't get one for free.

"There are always things that fire me up and motivate me," Phelps said. "Sometimes it's a comment. Sometimes it's what people do. That's just how I tick."

Earlier in the week, Cavic said he wouldn't feel bad about beating Phelps in a faster suit because, he claimed, a timing error had robbed him of a victory at the Olympic 100 fly final last year. In that race, Phelps topped Cavic by .01 of a second, but Cavic claimed he actually touched the wall first.

"The media has a way of taking one tiny little thing and making it into something it's really not, especially the American media," said Cavic, who wore the popular Arena X-Glide suit. "I've always said good things about Michael. I just looked at the scenario of the suits as it was, and made a few suggestions. . . . I don't see how I said anything wrong."

Phelps declined to comment on Cavics's comments throughout the week, saying he would let his swimming do the talking, and it did. His world record was one of four set Saturday, bringing the meet total to 39.

Cavic, a notoriously fast starter, hit the turn first in 22.69 seconds, but Phelps, a notoriously slow starter, did not trail as much as usual. He reached the first 50 in 23.36, which he said was the fastest split he had ever posted. He said he knew he would catch Cavic at that point.

And Cavic seemed to know it, too.