Blog 5

Name of article: Phelps Steps Away, Seeking Help Others Could Have Provided

Writer of the article: Karen Crouse

Affiliation: New York Times Columnist

Publication: New York Times

Date of publication: October 5, 2014

5 questions before reading:

1. What did he do
2. Who could have helped
3. Where did it happen
4. Why didn't he get help before hand
5. Is he retiring?

The authors main reason for writing this article is to inform the public about the internal struggles that Phelps has to deal with, and also lets us know that he has learned from his past issues and is taking steps in the right direction to cleaning up his act on his own.

The most important information is that Michael Phelps has an insane amount of pressure on him and many of his "friends" put the weight of the sport of swimming on his shoulders and this is why Phelps has social issues and acts up.

By writing this article, the author is implying that athletes put in the limelight are bound to fail in areas outside the sport. She is cutting popular athletes that are the face of their sport some slack becasue of the immense pressure they are under, and suggesting that too much pressure and importance may be put on these athletes.

The author is proving that Michael Phelps outside the pool issues are highlighted by his social retardation and that he has been forced to focus on swimming and swimming alone for over a decade and that can cause issues.

The writer is assuming that Phelps support community was not actually interested in his life success, but merely on his success in the pool.

The writer provides a couple quotes from Phelps swimming coach and mother, but for the most part not alot of cited information was used.

I believe the article is fairly presented because for most people no one knows about Phelps life outside of swimming. This insight to the struggles Phelps deals with helps the media and the public know about phelps civilian life instead of just his life in the pool.

I do believe and trust this article because it is from the New York Times which is a very reliable source. Also, the information about his swimming medals and off the field issues are accurate because I was aware of them.

The Article is accurate with all of the swimming stats about medals because I am aware of his medals and world records.

1. Phelps decided to put himself in a program to help with his drinking problem.
2. His mother and any advisors could have helped him
3. It happened in his home town during his break from swim training
4. He didnt get help before hand because he felt his mentors only cared about his success in the pool
5. For the time being, he is not swimming so it seems he is somewhat retiring for now. He had retired earlier for 18 months but then came out of retirement.