"People were telling me Michael Phelps might drop out" - When the American gave up backstroke spot to give maiden Olympics appearance to Bryce Hunt

At the 2004 Athens Olympics, Michael Phelps had given up his 200m backstroke Olympic spot to fellow swimmer Bryce Hunt. The latter was debuting at the Olympics and Phelps aimed to break Mark Spitz’s record of seven gold medals in a single Summer Games.

Michael Phelps, 38, debuted at the 2004 Summer Games as the top seed, having qualified for all the events he participated in. He competed in the 100m and 200m butterfly, 200m backstroke, 200m freestyle, and 200m and 400m individual medley. In his first event at the US Olympic Trials, Phelps won the 400m individual in a world record time of 4:08.41.

He won all the events at the 2004 Olympic Trials except the 200m backstroke and 100m butterfly. In the former category, Phelps finished second behind Aaron Piersol, who broke the world record with his performance. Going into the Olympic finals, he was the only swimmer qualified to compete in all six events he participated in.

Still a teenager, Phelps' warm gesture shone through at the finals when he gave up his 200m backstroke seat to Bryce Hunt, who was competing in his maiden Olympiad alongside Phelps. He trailed Aaron Piersol and Michael Phelps, which automatically added him to the roster on the latter's withdrawal.

Reportedly, the 28-time Olympic medalist was focusing on the 200m freestyle to be in contention with the Australian legend, Ian Thorpe. Hunt, a former swimmer representing the US and Auburn University, was elated after the speculations around Phelps' 200m backstroke pull-out turned out to be true.

"I'm pretty excited. People were telling me that he might drop out of the 200 backstroke, but I didn't think it was going to happen. I just hope I can bring back a medal," Hunt had said. (via ESPN)

In the semifinals, Bryce Hunt swam in a time of 1:59.74 to mark the tenth-best time at the 2004 Summer Games.

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"I'll never forget it" - Michael Phelps goes down memory lane when he won his first gold medal at the Athens Olympics

Swimming - Olympics: Day 7 Michael Phelps

In 2004 Athens, Michael Phelps won six golds and two bronze medals, which tied him with Alexander Dityatin for achieving eight medals of any color in an individual Summer Games. He won his first Olympic gold in the 400m individual medley, which was also a world-record-breaking feat in 4:08.26.

In a recent Instagram post by Retro Swimming, the picture with the wreath around his head was posted to celebrate 20 years of the historic moment.

The 23-time Olympic gold medalist shared the post in his story with the caption:

"I’ll never forget it…A dream come true”

Years after retiring from the sport, the 38-year-old is still active in the sporting world. He will enter the 2024 Paris Olympics as the hospitality ambassador of the Summer Games.