It finally starts to sink in for Phelps

By PAUL NEWBERRY

BEIJING (AP) — Michael Phelps finally seems to be grasping what it all means.

Maybe it started to sink in when the president showed up at the Water Cube and came back for an encore. Maybe he got a better idea when all those NBA superstars — Kobe Bryant and LeBron James among them — actually led the cheers for him. Maybe it was those relentless text messages from friends back home.

Maybe he actually listened when the race announcer at the pool said in a deep, authoritative voice:

"Michael Phelps, greatest Olympian ever."

The head dipped. The shoulders twitched. The slightest of smiles creased his lips.

"Growing up, I always wanted to be an Olympian," Phelps said later. "I just kept thinking, 'Wow, greatest Olympian of all time.' It's a pretty cool title."

After winning five gold medals and setting five world records over the course of four days, Phelps actually got a bit of a respite Thursday at the Beijing Games, maybe he'll even take a minute or two to reflect. He merely had the semifinals of the 200-meter individual medley in the morning, followed by the preliminaries of the 100 butterfly in the evening.

By Phelps' standards, a rather light day.

It finally starts to sink in for Phelps....