THE BEST EVER?: An inside look at Michael Phelps' pursuit of Olympic history

An inside look at Michael Phelps' pursuit of Olympic history BY JO-ANN BARNAS • FREE PRESS SPORTS WRITER • August 3, 2008 Dinner would commence within the hour, in the Georgian room at the Detroit Athletic Club, where Olympic swimming champion Michael Phelps -- smartly dressed in a blue suit and tie -- would be served an entrée of almond- and panko-crusted chicken with Vermont maple sauce. But eating was to follow mingling, so Phelps, at the nudging of his coach, Bob Bowman, began moving through the crowd at the Italian-American Bar Association of Michigan event. They were featured guests of Oakland County District Judge Michael Martone, whose son, Jamie, swam for Bowman at the University of Michigan. No matter how much he tried, though, Phelps' smile that late January night couldn't hide his weariness. He was coming off a... [read full story]