On Wednesday, Phelps swam into history as the winningest Olympic athlete ever with his 10th and 11th career gold medals — and five world records in five events at the Beijing Games.
A day after etching his name alongside Mark Spitz and Carl Lewis with gold No. 9, Phelps set a standard all his own when he won the 200-meter butterfly. An hour later, he swam the leadoff of a runaway victory by the U.S. 800 freestyle relay team, which shattered the old world mark in becoming the first team to break the 7-minute barrier.
After a six-gold performance at the 2004 Athens Games, Phelps needed only five days in Beijing to surpass Mark Spitz, Carl Lewis, Soviet gymnast Larysa Latynina and Finnish runner Paavo Nurmi as the winningest Olympian ever.
Information from the Associated Press contributed to this report.