Does Michael Phelps swim tonight?

Will Michael Phelps be in one of the four medal events for swimming tonight?

In what’s becoming an every-four-year event, Michael Phelps has emerged as one of — if not the — biggest stories at the Rio Olympics so far. For someone who retired four years ago, Phelps has looked better than ever, capturing a gold medal in each of his first four races. Phelps will have two more opportunities to go for Gold, with one of them — the 100m butterfly — happening tonight.

Phelps has already won the 100m butterfly three times at the Olympics. Should he emerge victorious again, it will mark the 23rd time Phelps has captured gold, far and away the most in the history of the Summer Games.

At this point, Phelps’ races are appointment television. This one, however, is especially can’t-miss, why with Phelps squaring off against an all-too-familiar foe in South Africa’s Chad Le Clos. The rivalry between these two dates back to the 2012 Olympics, where Le Clos bested Phelps in the 200 m butterfly. This time around, Le Clos was responsible for arguably the greatest Olympic meme of all-time: Phelps’ angry game face.

Next: 30 Olympic athletes who dominated their events

Phelps already avenged his loss in the 200 m butterfly, but if he can win tonight, he’ll have officially settled the score between the two, while picking up gold medal No. 23 in the process. As always, there’s no shortage of storylines whenever Michael Phelps is involved. Given his stellar, somewhat surprising run in Rio, it’s worth wondering whether we might see the legendary swimmer back in action — as a 35-year-old looking to do what no Olympic athlete has ever done — four years from now in Tokyo.

The race is scheduled to take place at 9:12 EST on NBC.

Home/Olympic Swimming