Longhorn fans are encouraged to visit TexasSports.com/Rio as a one-stop index page to follow all current and former University of Texas athletes and coaches who will compete in Rio this August.
".... But that day in 2012, in the final moments before his heat in the 200-meter butterfly, Schooling found himself in the field of vision of American superstar Michael Phelps. That was enough to remind him that he was 17 years old, and that he was about to swim against grown men, and that he was going to lose.
“He just stares into your soul,†Schooling said.
Earlier this month at the Longhorn Aquatics Elite Invite, the gaze of the biggest legend in swimming proved to be less intimidating. Schooling, now a decorated college swimmer at Texas with a host of national records, faced Phelps again at UT’s Jamail Swimming Center.
Four years after he failed to make it out of his first Olympic heat, Schooling stunned Phelps by seven-tenths of a second in the 100-meter butterfly, winning the event with a time of 51.58 seconds.
Yes, it was just an exhibition. And yes, it will matter a lot more if Schooling is able to repeat the feat against Phelps at the Olympics in Rio de Janeiro later this summer.
But for the the kid who might be the most prolific male athlete at UT — co-Division I swimmer of the year and winner of four individual NCAA championships — it was a breakthrough nonetheless.
“It’s a big deal,†Longhorns swimming coach Eddie Reese said, “because Michael Phelps doesn’t lose very often.†...."
