Michael Phelps is one of the best athletes in the world. He has won a total of 22 medals in the Olympics for swimming. Looked up to by many, Michael Phelps seems like the perfect person to idolize. However, he is proving that Olympians aren't all that perfect. Early Tuesday morning, Michael Phelps was arrestred for DUI, excessive speeding, and crossing double lines on the road. This isn't the first time that he has been arrested for DUI. In 2004, at the age of 19, he was arrested for DUI and in 2009, a picture of him smoking marijuana was released.
I used to look up to Michael Phelps. I saw him as an amazing athlete, who took the skills he had and made them better. I saw him as I saw any other Olympian: an amazing role model. Now, I don't see Michael Phelps as a role model, and it's starting to affect how I see other Olympians. Michael Phelps is showing the world that our athletes aren't goody two-shoes, who train hard, and eat right. They like to party. He portrays an image of Olympians drinking and smoking, as an idea of fun. Personally, I joined a sport just to aviod drinking and smoking. I knew that if I joined a serious sport, no one would want to drink or smoke, in fear that it would ruin their athletic performance. However, Michael Phelps has shown me, and the world, that athletes see drinking and smoking as okay.
Michael Phelps did apologize for his actions and said that it would never happen again. How can we believe him? He has already had one DUI and an apology isn't enough to let the world forget that. He needs to actually show that his apology is true. One way he can do that is by not swimming in any competitions, as a punishment. I believe this action will help the world see his apology is true, and tell the world that drinking and smoking is unacceptable, especially for Olympians.
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