Michael Phelps Gets Revenge, Beats Ryan Lochte in Final "Duel in the Pool"

Most medaled Olympian takes the gold from his teammate

By Alyssa Toomey Aug 02, 2012 10:12 PMTags
Michael Phelps, Ryan LochteREUTERS/David Gray

And it's another win for Michael Phelps.

The highly anticipated 200-meter individual medley showdown between Phelps and Ryan Lochte is officially over, with Phelps narrowly beating his rival by 63 hundredths of a second.

Phelps came in at 1:54.27 while Lochte took the silver medal with a time of 1:54.90. Laszlo Cseh of Hungary touched in at 1:56.22 for the bronze.

Phelps' win at the epic duel in the pool isn't the only thing the athlete has to celebrate—not only is this medal his first individual gold of the London games, but the Team USA legend is now the first male swimmer to win the same individual event in three straight Olympics.

The victory marks his 20th career Olympic medal and his 16th Olympic gold, both all-time records.

Just 31 minutes earlier, Lochte was upset by fellow American Tyler Clary in the men's 200-meter backstroke. Lochte's time in the pool earned him the bronze—his 10th Olympic medal.

After losing to Lochte in the 400-meter individual medley on Saturday, Phelps seems to have made the comeback many were counting on against his friendly rival—who is, first and foremost, his teammate.

NBC

Minutes before they swam against each other in a 200-meter IM relay semifinal yesterday, the swimming sensations were pictured celebrating side-by-side in the ready room as fellow Team USA swimmer Nathan Adrian won the 100-meter freestyle.

As the games continue, there's no question both Lochte and Phelps will be showing lots of Team USA spirit:

"Had some ups and downs this Olympics but bringing 5 Olympic medals back to #USA now time to cheer for #USA #Jeah," Lochte tweeted just minutes after the race.

Congratulations to Lochte, Phelps, Adrian and all the champions on Team USA!