Michael Phelps and me
How many of us know what sort of person we would become if we were in the position of Michael Phelps - or Tiger Woods for that matter - with people screaming your name everywhere you go?
Would you stay grounded? Would you even be able to stay focused on your job? Most of us can only imagine what it would be like to be that well known and have our every move examined by the media and the public.
Phelps and I had our first chat in 2000. I was in Seattle for the US nationals to take on the American Tom Malchow, the number one in the world on my event the 200 butterfly.
It was here after winning the race I met a baby-faced Phelps. He was in the warm-down pool and asked me what time I'd done. I thought he had just watched the race but it turned out the 14-year-old with the spotty face and a mouth full of braces had just come within a second of me and Malchow - both aged 23 and in our prime!
I'm Steve Parry. I won an Olympic bronze medal in Athens and I'll be aiming to give you an insight into the world of swimming as well as all the other Olympic sports.
