Olympic swimmer Michael Phelps on Sunday admitted that he had engaged in “regrettable” behavior and “demonstrated bad judgment” after a photo was published that appeared to show him smoking cannabis.
A British newspaper, the News of the World, published the photo allegedly showing the multiple Olympic gold medal-winner inhaling from a glass pipe which is generally used to smoke the drug.
The News of the World said the photograph of Phelps was taken at a house party being held by students at the University of South Carolina in Columbia last November.
PHOTO: AP
The newspaper did not say Phelps was smoking marijuana but said the glass pipe the swimmer was photographed using generally was used to smoke the weed.
Phelps, who has never failed a doping test, promised in his statement there would be no repeat of his behavior.
“I engaged in behavior which was regrettable and demonstrated bad judgment,” Phelps said in the statement.
“I’m 23 years old, and despite the successes I have had in the pool, I acted in a youthful and inappropriate way, not in a manner that people have come to expect from me,” he said. “For this, I am sorry. I promise my fans and the public — it will not happen again.”
Bob Bowman, Phelps’ longtime coach and mentor, had little to add.
“Michael has issued his statement. He regrets his behavior and I’m sure he’ll learn from this experience,” Bowman said in a statement of his own. “I’m glad to have him back in training.”
The newspaper said the picture was taken on Nov. 6, almost three months after Phelps won an historic eight gold medals at the Beijing Olympics.
The News of the World said Phelps was visiting Jordan Matthews, a girl he was secretly dating who was a student at the university, and threw himself into a series of parties in houses and bars.
The photograph shows Phelps, wearing a white T-shirt and a baseball cap back to front, holding the pipe — known as a bong — to his lips and apparently inhaling.
The tabloid quoted a partygoer as saying: “You could tell Michael had smoked before. He grabbed the bong and a lighter and knew exactly what to do.”
USA Swimming, the national governing body for the sport, said it was disappointed by Phelps’ admission.
“We are certainly disappointed in Michael’s behavior. Our Olympic champions are role models who are looked up to by people of all ages, especially young athletes who have their own aspirations and dreams,” USA Swimming said in a statement. “That said, we realize that none among us is perfect. We hope that Michael can learn from this incident and move forward in a positive way.”
The US Olympic Committee (USOC) also expressed disappointment in the swimmer, who on Jan. 22 was named the USOC’s Sportsman of the Year for making Olympic history in Beijing by collecting the most golds won by any athlete at a single Games, giving him a career total of 14 golds.
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