THIS SPORTING LIFE: THE RACE OF THE CENTURY

This Sporting Life Brings You The Olympian Race Of The Century
by Gary Evans 

The Olympics. The greatest show on earth. Where super-charged super-human beings go head-to-head to see who's the fastest, the strongest, the greatest. Where legends are made and heros are born. Where innate talent and a lifetime of training reaches its dramatic conclusion. Winner takes all. Death or glory. That's what it means to Olympic athletes, anyway. For me, it's just one long productivity vacuum. Hours upon hours spent sitting in my pants, watching events I don't know the rules to, in the vain hope Team GB will snatch a medal. This year, however, there's one contest in particular I'm looking forward to. Ian Thorpe is Australia's greatest ever Olympian. Thorpe has five Olympic gold medals, held thirteen world records and took eleven world championship golds during a glittering career that began at just fourteen. But with nothing left to prove – or win – he retired in 2006. Now, still just twenty-nine, he's set to make a comeback. 

Thorpe was idolised by young American, Michael Phelps. Phelps would go on to become the most successful Olympian of all-time, taking an unprecedented eight gold medals at the last games in Beijing, sixteen in total, surpassing the benchmark set by his hero. Part of the reason the pair have been such dominant forces in swimming over the past ten years is down to their physical attributes. Both have almost perfect physiques for speed in the water. Thorpe has size seventeen feet, earning him the nickname Flipper, to go with the more widely-used Thorpedo. He is also known as one of the most mentally robust athletes in the history of sport. Phelps, on the other hand, has tiny feet by comparison – size fourteen. He compensates, though, with hypermobile ankles that are more flexible than most ballet dancer's. His long, thin torso gives him low drag through the water, while his massive arm span – at over 6 feet in length – is almost as the same size as he is. He also famously consumes over 10,000 calories a day – enough to feed an average man for five days.

The two have competed against each other only twice, most notably in the thrilling 200m freestyle at the 2004 games in Athens, dubbed the "Race of the Century", with Thorpe taking the spoils on that occasion. In 2012, Thorpe is set to compete in the 100m and 200m freestyle, and Phelps, too, is looking to focus more on sprint events at this year's games. The "Race of the Century" is back on.

So. Who's going to win? Well, Thorpe has to qualify for the games first. Which, for most athletes, would be difficult after being absent from sport for so long. But Thorpe isn't just any athlete. As for Phelps – he's looked unbeatable in recent years. And, after Thorpe made comments doubting Phelps's chances of taking eight golds in Beijing, the American will relish the opportunity to once again compete against his hero. And this time, he'll be gunning for gold. This one's too close to call.

Gary Evans is a contributing writer to Rolling Stone magazine and Sabotage Times. Follow Gary on Twitter: @GazEvans