USA Swimming suspends Michael Phelps six months

Michael Phelps was arrested in Maryland in the early morning hours of Oct. 2 when he was pulled over and found to be driving under the influence. He was driving 84 MPH in a 45 zone and was found to be double crossing lanes.

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According to media reports, police said that Michael Phelps’ blood-alcohol content was .14. He annonced Sunday via Twitter that he would be attending rehab to help his latest problems with bad decision making.

I’m going to take some time away to attend a program that will provide the help I need to better understand myself.
— Michael Phelps (@MichaelPhelps) October 5, 2014

Now, Michael Phelps will deal with larger repercussions. USA Swimming announced Monday that the four-time Olympian will be suspended from USA Swimming for six months and said he won’t be on next year’s USA team at the world championships.

“Michael accepts USA Swimming’s sanctions. He has apologized for his actions and, as he shared yesterday, is taking steps to address them,” a spokesperson from his management company, Octagon, told CNN Monday.

Michael Phelps, now 29, has been in trouble behind the wheel before. In 2004, when he was just 19-years-old, he was arrested for DUI in Maryland, but was able to strike a plea deal with prosecutors and plead guilty in exchange for 18 months probation.

Michael Phelps is the winningest Olympian in the world with his 22 medals and 18 gold medals for Swimming. In the 2008 summer Olympics in Bejing, China, Michael Phelps won gold in every single event he participated in, getting eight gold medals and setting seven world records.

After the 2012 summer Olympics in London, Michael Phelps said he was done, but had recently hinted that he would give it another try in Brazil at the 2016 summer Olympics. We’ll see how this suspension from Team USA at the World Championships affects his decision for 2016.

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