Phelps acknowledges photo showing him smoking pot

Associated Press ^ | Feb. 1, 2009 | PAUL NEWBERRY

[Free ThinkerNY]

TAMPA, Fla. (AP) — Olympic great Michael Phelps has acknowledged "regrettable" behavior and "bad judgment" after a photo in a British newspaper showed him smoking marijuana.

[NittanyLion]

Assumng of course the Olympic Committee follows its own policies.

I'm under the impression the standard ban is 2 years, with a possibility of 4 years for an especially egregious offense. I suspect he'll get a two year suspension for this.

[Wild Irish Rogue]

” He better if he wants his endorsements not to be pulled. “

Bingo.
“ The scandal could be a major buzz kill for Phelps, whose agent, Peter Carlisle,
has said Phelps could bag up to $100 million in endorsements.
The world-record holder’s deals with Visa, PowerBar, AT&T Wireless and Speedo may all be in jeopardy.”

Phelps has been putting his PG endorsements at risk for months .
He’s become a regular in Las Vegas , running with the celebutard crowd.

[sten]

actually, do we know where the picture was taken? was it in amsterdam? or another country that may have legalized pot?

and another thing... no one is complaining about the backstabbing ‘friend’ that took the picture. if this kind of thing isn’t stopped (we see celebs with this happening quite a bit)... then it will drive all celebs into isolation in order to avoid anything embarrassing. and i mean anything. look at paris hilton’s prison stay. she was afraid to urinate in her cell as she thought the guards would take pictures and sell them to the tabloids (which happened any how)

as a country we should be slamming the lamers that take the photos, not the ones being exploited. and where is the protection for those being exploited for money against their will? where are the consent forms?

[pepperdog]

Gateway!

[mysterio]

I have a problem with a failed war on a plant conducted by federal government.

[dfwgator]

He won’t need to worry about the 2012 Olympics now. Might as well light another bong - he’s done. Assumng of course the Olympic Committee follows its own policies.

Doesn't that only apply to performance enhancing drugs, like steroids?

[truthguy]

Please people cut the guy some slack! Look if this is Phelps then yes he is stupid. But I can understand why this might happen.

First I don't think that that cannabis is a PERFORMANCE ENHANCING DRUG. If anything cannabis would hurt his performance. So it is to no advantage to use a drug like cannabis. But if your life was absorbed by training, training , and more training you are probably dying to have some "fun". I think that too many posters here have forgot what it's like to be young and foolish. Yes it's stupid but Phelps is still quite young and not wise in the ways of the world. Cutting loose is something young people are just dying to do. I can remember when I was his age and I did some pretty stupid things as well. In fact I did some VERY stupid things and my life wasn't nearly as spartan as Phelps must be. But you have just got to cut loose and go a little wild when you are young or you will go completely crazy.

The problem in all this is that Phelps is world famous. He lives in a fish bowl. He can't do the "normal" stuff that I did and get away with it. Nobody knew or cared what I did because I was just one of many doing the same crazy things. Nobody cares about me and there were no cameras around. And yes I inhaled.

[HerrBlucher]

and has the maturity of a 14 year old....a lot of freepers are like that.

LOL! Cajungirl, you just belted one out of the park!

[dfwgator]

Pot should be treated the same as alcohol, now if Phelps was caught drinking a beer, this wouldn’t have caused a fuss, would it?

And I say this as a person who has never tried pot and has no intention of ever trying it.

[truthguy]

You can be an Olympian and still be an idiot. Your chances are just as good as anyone else’s.

So you never did anything stupid when you were young? Or maybe you are still young. I hope you are a Saint. You wouldn't want to be a hypocrite would you?

[truthguy]

as a country we should be slamming the lamers that take the photos, not the ones being exploited. and where is the protection for those being exploited for money against their will? where are the consent forms?

Agreed! I think the creep who took the picture and either sold or distributed it is the one to be scorned here. I wonder if all these moralists posting here are as pure as the driven snow? I'll bet there are a lot of hypocrites posting today.

[Ken H]

I don't see it as a good thing. I see it as part of the decay that 1960's style radicalism instilled in our society. The pro-druggies disagree of course. I do think it's a big deal and given the choice between two otherwise equal candidates, I'd side with the one who was strong enough to resist drugs (and excessive alcohol).

From a FR thread a few months ago:

Palin said she has smoked marijuana -- remember, it was legal under state law, she said, even if illegal under U.S. law -- but says she didn't like it and doesn't smoke it now. "I can't claim a Bill Clinton and say that I never inhaled."

http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2072464/posts

[NormsRevenge]

Bong haPPens.

Thank goodness it wasn’t crack or ice.

Imagine what an example that might set.

Over to you, USOC.

[Blue Highway]

George HW Bush used illegal substances? You said the last 3 presidents... GWB, Clinton and GHWB

[Kimmers]

You pegged him right.....my sons friend used to compete with and party with Micheal, yup Micheal likes weed.......

and it does not bother me either....

[668 - Neighbor of the Beast]

I don’t think you read my post very well, truthguy. Or possibly you meant to respond to another.

[Tallguy]

So he smoked pot. No different than having a scotch. Except the nanny state has deemed one naughty and the other “acceptable.” The nanny state can bite it.

Except in this case the user is a world-class athlete who relies on lung capacity for his extraordiary talent. Foolish, if you ask me. Getting photographed, that was the stupid part.

[dfwgator]

Except in this case the user is a world-class athlete who relies on lung capacity for his extraordiary talent. Foolish, if you ask me

Yep, such a shame his pot usage cost him all of those victories in Beijing.

[Tallguy]

These guys were looking for a huge payoff from those 8 gold medals, and from what I’ve seen, Phelps hasn’t even come close to what they were looking for.

I never understood all the talk about cashing-in on those Olympic medals. Mark Spitz didn't. Swimming & Track/Field are an every-four-years kinda thing. As a swimmer he couldn't even get a shoe contract.

[Oztrich Boy]

Shoulda
"That's not me, and it's a photoshop, and all the time I was smoking harmless tobacco."