was it wrong for Michael Phelps to smoke weed at a house party?

from news of the world

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14-times Olympic gold medal winner Michael Phelps caught with cannabis pipe
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By Georgina Dickinson, 01/02/2009
THIS is the astonishing picture which could destroy the career of the greatest competitor in Olympic history.

In our exclusive photo Michael Phelps, who won a record EIGHT gold medals for swimming at the Beijing games last summer, draws from a bong.

READ: I'M SORRY, SAYS MICHAEL PHELPS

The glass pipes are generally used to smoke cannabis.

And after sporting chiefs announced laws which mean four-year bans for drug-taking, Phelps’ dreams of adding to his overall 14 gold medal tally at the 2012 games in London could already be OVER.

Those dreams seemed the last thing on his mind when he puffed from the bong during two days of partying with students last November, a quiet time in the swimming calendar when athletes would not expect to get tested for drugs.

One party-goer who witnessed the star’s behaviour told the News of the World: “He was out of control from the moment he got there.

“If he continues to party like that I’d be amazed if he ever won any more medals again.”

Phelps’ aides went into a panic over our story and offered us a raft of extraordinary incentives not to run the bong picture.

It was on November 6, weeks after his Beijing triumph, that 23-year-old Phelps surprised students at the University Of South Carolina in Columbia by showing up unannounced at a house party.

He was visiting Jordan Matthews, a girl he was secretly seeing who was a student there.

Our source revealed: “Michael came to visit Jordan but ended up just getting wasted every night.

“He arrived with a group of girls hanging all over him. Jaws hit the floor when he walked in. You don’t get many celebrities in Columbia, so when Phelps comes to your party it’s a very big deal.
Obnoxious

“He didn’t know many people so you’d think he’d be a little shy. But he was loud, obnoxious and slamming beers from the get-go.

“Every girl wanted a piece of him and every guy wanted to be his best buddy. He couldn’t get enough of all the attention.”

As he basked in his hero status, Phelps knocked back beers and shots of spirits. And when a student offered him the glass bong engraved with red writing, he did not hesitate, says our source.

The 6ft 4ins athlete, in a white T-shirt and navy cap worn back to front, clasped the device in his huge hands and inhaled deeply.

Our source said: “You could tell Michael had smoked before. He grabbed the bong and a lighter and knew exactly what to do.

“He looked just as natural with a bong in his hands as he does swimming in the pool. He was the gold medal winner of bong hits. Michael ended up getting a little paranoid, though, because before too long he looked like he was nervous and ran out of the place.”

But the next night, Phelps was out partying again. The source added: “He was right back at it at Pavlov’s bar.

“Like the night before he was holding court, throwing back shots two at a time and pouring drinks to every cute girl.”

Drink has got Phelps into trouble before. In 2004, aged 19, he got 18 months probation for driving while under the influence.

His wild behaviour is in stark contrast to the grim regime which took him to the top of his sport.

He once described his life, saying: “All you do is eat, sleep, swim; eat, sleep, swim; eat, sleep, swim.”

Last night Phelps’ management team and the sporting world closed ranks over the scandal.
Taint

The US Olympics Committee, who have pledged to clamp down on drug use, refused to comment, as did USA Swimming and Phelps’ coach Bob Bowman.

More surprising still was the World Anti-Doping Agency’s refusal to comment, given that they introduced the four-year ban on sport’s drug users.

Phelps, who earned £4million last year in endorsements, has resumed training for the 2012 games.

But there were fears about his commitment when, weeks after the bong incident, he began dating former stripper Caroline Pal.

Phelps is represented by marketing giant Octagon, which works with huge brands such as Mastercard and HSBC. They admitted proven cannabis use would be “a major taint” on Phelps’ character.

Spokesman Clifford Bloxham offered us an extraordinary deal not to publish our story, saying Phelps would become our columnist for three years, host events and get his sponsors to advertise with us.

In return, he asked that we kill Phelps’ bong picture. Bloxham said: “It’s seeing if something potentially very negative for Michael could turn into something very positive for the News of the World.”

He stressed that the swimmer had taken 1,500 drug tests and never failed one.

Until now?

It's never wrong for anyone to smoke weed ever.

from yahoo

Phelps acknowledges photo using pot pipe

Olympic great Michael Phelps acknowledged "regrettable" behavior and "bad judgment" after a photo in a British newspaper Sunday showed him inhaling from a marijuana pipe.

In a statement to The Associated Press, the swimmer who won a record eight gold medals at the Beijing Games did not dispute the authenticity of the exclusive picture published Sunday by the tabloid News of the World.

"I engaged in behavior which was regrettable and demonstrated bad judgment," Phelps said in the statement released by one of his agents. "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."

News of the World said the picture was taken during a November house party while Phelps was visiting the University of South Carolina. During that trip, he attended one of the school's football games and received a big ovation when he was introduced to the crowd.

While the newspaper did not specifically allege that Phelps was smoking pot, it did say the pipe is generally used for that purpose and anonymously quoted a partygoer who said the Olympic champion was "out of control from the moment he got there."

The U.S. Olympic Committee said it was "disappointed in the behavior recently exhibited by Michael Phelps," who was selected the group's sportsman of the year. He also was honored as AP male athlete of the year, and his feat in Beijing — breaking Mark Spitz's 36-year-old record for most gold medals in an Olympics — was chosen as the top story of 2008.

"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," the USOC said in a statement. "In this instance, regrettably, he failed to fulfill those responsibilities."

The party occurred nearly three months after the Olympics while Phelps was taking a long break from training, and this apparently would have no impact on the eight golds he won at Beijing. He has never tested positive for banned substances and even agreed to extra testing before the games.

Marijuana is viewed differently from performance-enhancing drugs, according to David Howman, executive director of the World Anti-Doping Agency. An athlete is subject to WADA sanctions only for a positive test that occurs during competition periods.

"We don't have any jurisdiction," Howman said. "It's not banned out of competition. It's only if you test positive in competition."

Phelps returned to the pool a couple of weeks ago to begin preparations for this summer's world championships in Rome. He plans to take part in his first post-Olympics meet in early March, a Grand Prix event in Austin, Texas.

Phelps was in Tampa, Fla., during Super Bowl week to make promotional appearances on behalf of a sponsor. But he left the city before Sunday's game between the Pittsburgh Steelers and Arizona Cardinals, abandoning his original plan to be at Raymond James Stadium.

This isn't the first embarrassing episode for Phelps after an Olympic triumph. In 2004, a few months removed from 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.

In his book "No Limits: The Will to Succeed," Phelps recounted how his first phone call was to his agent, and not his mother or coach Bob Bowman, because he knew they would yell at him.

Later, he called Bowman, who was supportive but told him, "Michael, just because you want to blow off some steam doesn't mean you can be an idiot."

Debbie Phelps, his mother, cried at the news.

"That hurt worse, maybe, than anything," Phelps wrote. "I had never seen my mother that upset."

Bowman did not immediately respond to phone and e-mail messages Sunday.

Last year, News of the World posted video on its Web site showing Max Mosley, the president of motor racing's governing body, engaging in sex acts with five prostitutes. The video was filmed by one of the women, and Mosley admitted to being a part of the scenario but sued for breach of privacy and was awarded $120,000 in damages. Another news break involved Prince Harry in 2002, smoking marijuana and drinking before the legal age of 18.

Olympic teammate Dara Torres said Phelps has become such a prominent figure that everything he does is news.

However, she said: "This in no way, shape or form diminishes anything he's done."

"It's sort of a double-edged sword," Torres told the AP on Sunday. "When you're recognizable, you're looked up to as a role model. He is recognizable and everything you do gets looked at and picked apart. I guess that's the price of winning 14 Olympic medals."

Jason Lezak, whose remarkable anchor leg of the 400-meter freestyle relay helped Phelps stay on course to break Spitz's record, said he was "saddened" to hear of the report.

"While I don't condone his conduct, I am a teammate and fan," Lezak said in a text message to the AP. "Unlike many fair-weather people, I am sticking by him. If my wife and I can help him in any way, we will. I believe he will grow from this and be better person, role model and teammate."

The USOC noted that Phelps acknowledged his mistake and apologized.

"We are confident that, going forward, Michael will consistently set the type of example we all expect from a great Olympic champion," the governing body said.

___

AP Sports Writers Beth Harris in Los Angeles and Chris Lehourites in London contributed to this report.

who the hell invites people to thier parties who bring camera's?..............Bad host!!

As much as I dislike illegal drugs...he works/trains 7 days a week, every week for years. Let the fucking guy party a bit after he helped the US beat the Chinese.

Yes, he deserves to pay the fine for his illegal actions but should not be blackballed from the Olympics for this. If thats the worst hes doing then thank god.

Doesn't he know that smoking merriwanna gives you teh AIDS? :confused:

Hell, he should be allowed to compete, then if he wins another medal or two, he should have another added for winning after smoking weed. It's not like it's performance enhancing.

that's exactly what I was thinking. All of the stoners should get a head start, in fact.

I mean the guys an inspirations to millions, you can achieve your dreams of winning on the world stage.. and pull off sweet bong rips.

seriously, if most of the people that smoke weed showed like 1/16th of the initiative that phelps did... we'd have a lot more high people around doing shit.

Yeah, but it'll never happen because the people who run the Olympics are assholes. Remember that one guy that won a track event in the 90's then later had his metal stripped when his pissed hot for weed?

yeah and people who take pictures like that should be dragged around back and have the shit severely kicked out of them............but then again phelps did let the picture happen..............dummy