posted under sexy-news by Nicole-Admin

Michael Phelps was shown in a photograph smoking marijuana in a British newspaper. The Olympic Champion swimmer who won eight gold medals in the 2008 Summer Games has admitted that it is him depicted in the picture. He publicly acknowledged that the “News of the World” photo showing him smoking from a bong was true. The photo was taken at a party at the Univeristy of South Caroline in Columbia while Phelps was visiting a girlfriend.

According to the British article Phelps was described by students as “loud and obnoxious”. One partygoer said the Olympic champion was “out of control from the moment he got there.” Representatives were worried to say the least about this discovery and tried to make an offer so that the photo wouldn’t be released. Here is Phelps statement in regards to his behavior:

“I engaged in behavior which was regrettable and demonstrated bad judgment. I’m 23 years old and despite the successes I’ve had in the pool, I acted in a youthful and inappropriate way, not in a manner people have come to expect from me. For this, I am sorry. I promise my fans and the public it will not happen again.”

The United States Olympic Committee released this statement about the incident today: “We are disappointed in the behavior recently exhibited by Michael Phelps. Michael is a role model, and he is well aware of the responsibilities and accountability that come with setting a positive example for others, particularly young people. In this instance, regrettably, he failed to fulfill those responsibilities. Michael has acknowledged that he made a mistake and apologized for his actions. We are confident that, going forward, Michael will consistently set the type of example we all expect from a great Olympic champion.”

Phelps was just in Tampa, Fla., during Super Bowl week to make promotional appearances on behalf of a sponsor. He ended up abandoning his plan to be at Raymond James Stadium and left the city before Sunday’s game between the Pittsburgh Steelers and Arizona Cardinals.
According to an article in the Evolver, “this isn’t the first embarrassing episode for Phelps after an Olympic triumph. In 2004, a few months after winning six gold and two bronze medals in Athens, the swimmer was arrested on a drunken driving charge at age 19. He pleaded guilty and apologized for the mistake.”

This isn’t the best example for Phelps to set for children across the country who look up to him. This could hurt his reputation, but I guess we all make mistakes. With that being said it is also important that we learn from our mistakes. Hopefully the young Olympian has done so and decides to move forward by doing better in the future. Now that he’s been so successful and represented our country it’s important that he maintain a good ‘rep’ by making good decisions since he will be in the limelight for a while.