Michael Phelps becomes first male swimmer to qualify for 5 Olympics

Michael Phelps.
(Image credit: Al Bello/Getty Images)

On Wednesday, Michael Phelps became the first American male swimmer to qualify for five Olympic teams over the course of his career.

During the U.S. Olympic trials in Omaha, the 22-time Olympic medalist finished first in the men's 200-meter butterfly, at 1:54.84, automatically qualifying for the 2016 games in Rio. The 31-year-old will likely swim in multiple events. "Just being able to finish how I want to is so important to me," he said. "Getting on this team is what I wanted to do."

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Catherine Garcia, The Week US

Catherine Garcia is night editor for TheWeek.com. Her writing and reporting has appeared in Entertainment Weekly and EW.com, The New York Times, The Book of Jezebel, and other publications. A Southern California native, Catherine is a graduate of the University of Redlands and the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism.