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Graphics shows US swimmer Michael Phelps cemented his place in Olympics history Sunday, capping a sensational week by becoming the first athlete ever to win eight gold medals in one games. [Zhou Yongmin/Xinhua]
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Beijing's bubble-shaped Water Cube will long be remembered as the birthplace of an epic story - Michael Phelps and eight Olympic gold medals.
Nine days, 17 races. American superfish Phelps carefully measured every step and went through his Beijing adventure with flawless performance, placing eight gold medals under his name.
By doing so, Phelps beat legendary Mark Spitz' seven-gold mark, and also became the most prolific Olympic gold medalist beyond Spitz, Carl Lewis, Paavo Nurmi and Larysa Latynina, who won nine Olympic golds each in their career.
"I went from hitting my head on the wall to win by one hundredth of a second to doing my best time in every event. It's been nothing but an upwards roller coaster. It's been nothing but fun," Phelps said, adding "the biggest thing is nothing is impossible and all it takes is an imagination."
Phelps started his campaign with a victory in the first final of the meet last Sunday, the 400-meter individual medley, cruised through the 200-meter medley, 100-meter and 200-meter butterfly, 200-meter freestyle and both the 4x100m and 4x200m freestyle relays, and concluded his campaign with the 4x100-meter medley relay on Sunday.
His epic victory put an end to the pool competition in Beijing, where 98 medals were shared by 19 countries.
The United States and Australia continued to be the dominant forces in the pool with the former taking away 12 gold medals and the latter possessing six. But more countries, frequently seen as relying on one swimmer, joined the gold battle and had their names written on the medal table.
Japan's Kosuke Kitajima successfully defended his titles in men's 100-meter and 200-meter breaststroke, becoming the only swimmer who has won four Olympic breaststroke gold medals, two in Athens and two in Beijing. His medals together with three bronze ones won by teammates put Japan high on the medal tally, only after the United States and Australia.
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Michael Phelps of the United States gestures after his team winning the men's 4x100m medley relay final at the Beijing 2008 Olympic Games in the National Aquatics Center, also known as the Water Cube in Beijing, China, Aug. 17, 2008. Phelps won his eighth gold medal at the Beijing Olympics swimming events on Sunday, breaking Mark Spitz's record of seven gold medals won at a single Games in 1972. [Qi Heng/Xinhua]
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Britain, who for a long time, stayed far below on the medal tally, jumped to the fourth place thanks to a 19-year-old girl Rebecca Adlington.
Adlington, whose previous record was almost not worth mentioning, emerged as a "dark horse" in Beijing, bringing home two golds in the women's 400-meter and 800-meter freestyle.
As if that was not enough, the Olympic debutante made history by cutting the oldest standing world record in swimming set by Janet Evans of the United States in the 800-meter freestyle in 1989, the year she was born.
Germany's Britta Steffen joined the double title club by defeating Australia's world record holder Libby Trickett in women's 100-meter and 50-meter freestyle, crowning the new sprint queen.