Michael Phelps winning gold in the 200-meter butterfly caused a cascade of emotions in the 31-year-old swimmer. Of course there were going to be tears but some people were confused when, midway through the anthem, Phelps began laughing for seemingly no reason. Now we know why.
Michael Phelps’ friends used an Orioles ritual to make him crack up on the Olympic podium
James Dator has been covering a wide range of sports for SB Nation for over a decade, with a special focus on the NFL.
Just as Phelps won his medal, the Baltimore Orioles were starting their game some 6,000 miles away against the Oakland Athletics. Normally that factoid wouldn’t even register as a footnote, but Phelps’ friends had a surprise when they screamed “Oh!” during the anthem -- a reference to Phelps’ beloved Orioles.
At the end of the video you can see Phelps motion to the stands and begin laughing more. When the anthem concluded he could be seen saying, “I can’t believe you did that!” referring to what happened. Phelps explained more to NBC’s Michele Tafoya.
“And all of a sudden I hear them roar ‘Oh!,’ and I knew exactly where it came from, and I just lost it, because those guys came down from Baltimore and New York City to be here, and it’s just special to see those guys in the stands.”
It was a way to break the tension. A release for Phelps, whose lead up to not only the Olympics, but the 200-meter butterfly final was fraught with emotion. He faced his demons in order to make it back to Rio, then contorted his face to look like one when he was goaded by South African swimmer Chad le Clos.
You can take the folks out of Baltimore, but ... you know the rest. It was a hilarious, human moment that helped relieve the grand seriousness of the moment. Sure, you could take a shot at Phelps’ entourage for wrecking an otherwise honorific moment, but let’s face it: Phelps has been up there enough times that he deserves a pass on being stoic during this one.
h/t Washington Post
