People crowd around the big television at the sports television network I intern at, waiting. Strangers in bars and restaurants put down their drinks to stare at the small box tuned to NBC, eager in anticipation. The internet chatter on message boards, instant messages, and blogs creep to a screeching halt as the moment is yet again here. Not just across the Philadelphia area, not even just across the United States, but across the world people are stopping to watch Michael Phelps.

For the first time I can remember, swimming has become the most popular sport on the globe, at least for now. “The Redeem Team” of the United States takes a back seat to Phelps, along with every other Olympic sport in Beijing; not to mention baseball playoff races and football pre-season games. This 23-year old “Baltimore Bullet”, now living in Michigan where he trains, is on a quest for the most gold medals in one Olympics. With each race passing, and another gold medal around his neck, another “Star Spangled Banner” played, and another world record broken, more people are stopping to watch. This is quickly becoming one of the greatest achievements in sports history and if he can complete the last 3 races with golds, it will be forever remembered as the single greatest. But beyond the medals and ceremonies, and beyond the interviews and endorsements he will pick up after these games (and possible Hollywood movie? at least Lifetime movie), there is a deeper and more significant meaning to these young man’s remarkable achievements. Two main things truly stick out to me: the distraction we all so desperately need from the seemingly never ending world issues/elections/invasions; and secondly, the pureness and innocent brilliance Phelps is winning with.

Michael Phelps hasn’t trained at the University of Michigan the past number of years to provide as a good light in a world, and host Olympic country, of occasional darkness. He hasn’t come to Beijing as a temporary relief for us; he’s there to win. And if you have watched his races thus far, you can tell just how focused he truly is on swimming and swimming alone. Tonight after winning yet another gold in the 200m butterfly and breaking yet another world record, he slammed his goggles down and glared around the stadium. In a later interview, he revealed that when he entered the water to begin the race, water flooded his goggles. He said it didn’t effect him on great levels, but knew he could go faster than he did. Keep in mind, he just won a gold with a world record broken, and he’s mad. But as these Olympics carry on, we are constantly reminded that nations gathering in sport is just one small show, every few years, that can’t stop what happens around our world. The war in Iraq continues to wage on. Negative campaign advertisements flood the airwaves here in America on television, radio, and elsewhere. Most recently, Russian troops have invaded the neighboring country of Georgia. We must also not forget other popular figures who have passed like comedian/actor Bernic Mac, singer Isaac Hayes, and even the father-in-law of a United States coach (tragically attacked near the Olympics site in Beijing). Like in sports there are no timeouts, no resting period between heats or races, no room for error. Lives continue to perish, countries bicker back and forth, and turmoil churns across the globe. So what is a kid from Baltimore doing about this? He is giving us a chance to forget; and although we always have our troops and other innocent civilians in the world in our hearts, the excitement he has created is palpable. People are coming together to root for him, to cheer, and to smile when he shatters record after record, winning gold after gold. The Olympics end August 24, and Phelps last race is August 17; that’s less than week left to watch the wonder-boy finish his quest. We can’t ignore what happens around us in the world and it can get depressing. But this young man creates a blisteringly fun show that we can rally around, and although it’s over soon, any person will treasure a few weeks away from everything: focusing on sport, on Phelps, and on gold.

Michael Phelps is the best thing to happen to sports in a very long time. (AP Photo/Baltimore Sun)

Perhaps an equally satisfying and exciting aspect of this swimmers journey is the way he’s winning: clean and without doubt. It’s no secret at all that steroids, cheating, and other scandals have rocked Major League Baseball, the National Football League, and professional cycling, just to name a few. Baseball players juicing; their records need asterisks. Tour De France winners stripped of their medals, guilty of illegal substances. Football teams apparently spying on opposing teams coaches. Hell, you can even go as far as the athletes themselves: completely selfish and seemingly caring solely of the money (currently see: Stephen Jackson, RB: St. Louis Rams, holding out for almost 2 weeks). Phelps is the polar opposite of a selfish athlete or a cheating winner. He has lost before: hard to believe I know. He has trained tireless hours, days, months and years to be on this national stage at these moments. There have been zero reports of doping and his biggest mistake ever was a DUI arrest a few years back of which he afterwards apologized greatly and has since provided a great role model to young swimmers (in his own camp at Michigan) and athletes worldwide. Winning gold by himself is a thrill, that’s easy to see. But were you watching during the jaw-dropping 4×100 relay? If you were you saw Phelps swim the first of 4 legs, and proceed to transform himself into the biggest USA cheerleader standing poolside. The picture of his absolute joy has made its rounds, and it shows the selflessness of this young man; winning on a team of 4 is just as great if not greater than an individual gold.

So, with 2 more gold medals and 2 more world records under his belt tonight, Michael Phelps continues to draw the world’s attention. He is a perfect 5 for 5, with 3 races remaining: the 200m individual medley on August 15, 100m butterfly August 16, and the 4 x 100m medley relay August 17. Whether or not he finishes a record 8 for 8 gold is yet to be seen. But even if he falls short of that, even if the next few days do not go his way, there is something greater happening because of him. Is he some sort of martyr? Hell no, he’s just a swimmer, and he would be the first to tell you that. Is he a hero? Yes a hundred times over, and he might be ok with that one. People are watching these races without questions of cheating or drugs. And we can watch, together, as a star athlete, one of the greatest of all time chases history. We can push aside the troubles of the day and of the week, if only for this short Olympic time. I for one, am very thankful for the Baltimore Bullett named Michael Phelps. I am more than ready for race number 6 in a few days.