Michael Phelps drops 4-word reaction to how he looked before becoming an Olympic legend

Michael Phelps shared his thoughts as he revisited his 25-year-old image from the 2000 Olympics. The former American swimmer made his Olympic debut during those Games and went on to become arguably the greatest Olympian of all time.

The official Instagram handle of the Olympics shared the image of Phelps alongside other Olympic stars including Simone Biles and Usain Bolt before their rise to popularity in a post on Friday.

The American swimmer reshared his picture from the 2000 Sydney Olympics on his Instagram stories and expressed astonishment at his Olympic debut having been so long ago.

"Almost 25 years ago 😳," he wrote.

Michael Phelps' Instagram story

Phelps was the youngest American to make the Olympic team in 68 years on his debut in 2000, and while he didn't win any medals, he finished fifth in the 200m butterfly. He, however, took the next edition of the Olympics by storm in Athens, winning a staggering six golds and two bronze medals.

The Baltimore Bullet broke the record for most gold medals at a single Olympics event with eight at the 2008 Beijing Games. He broke the world record in seven of his eight gold medal wins and an Olympic record in the 100m butterfly as well.

Phelps won four more golds and two silvers on his fourth Olympic appearance in 2012 and retired afterward. However, he struggled with depression and came out of retirement ahead of the 2016 Rio Olympics, winning five golds and one silver medal to pull the curtain on the greatest swimming career of all time.

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"I want the record to be broken" - Michael Phelps on his giant Olympic record of 23 gold medals

Olympic Swimmers Testify Before House Panel On Anti-Doping Measures - Michael Phelps in attendance (Source: Getty)

Speaking during an appearance on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon in 2024, Michael Phelps revealed that while he wanted his record of 23 Olympic gold medals to be broken, it would take an immense amount of hard work and dedication for someone who wanted to achieve it.

"If somebody breaks that, I want to see it happen," he said (via NBC).

"I know what I put into winning 23 Olympic gold medals, and 28 total. But for me, if somebody does have that dream and they're not afraid every single day to go after it, then I want the record to be broken. I think it would be so cool to have somebody accomplish their goal and their dream, just like I did," Michael Phelps added.

The 39-year-old has also held 39 world records in his career but 37 of those have been broken as of 2025. The last of his individual world records, 400m Individual medley, was broken by France's Leon Marchand at the 2023 World Championships and he now holds the records in two relay events, 4x100m freestyle and 4x200m freestyle.