Five-time Olympic champion Ian Thorpe has stunned the world of swimming by retiring at the age of 24.
The Australian won three gold medals at the 2000 Games in Sydney and added two titles in Athens four years later. But he has barely competed since then because of injury and fatigue, and told a news conference in Sydney he had been weighing up his future for some time.
“I’ve had a great career. It isn’t the best time to be walking away from the sport but it’s my time,” he said. “I don’t think I should be retiring, I think I’m far too young to retire, but it’s a thing that we should be celebrating. I’ve had a great career. It’s a decision that has been difficult. I realise that there’s things in my life that are more important for me. I’ve reached all the dizzying heights of this sport. I’ve had a tremendous amount of success and I’ve also had setbacks. None of my goals included breaking any more world records. I knew how to do it, but it wasn’t as inspiring as it should have been.”
Born in Sydney, Thorpe first swam for his country at the age of 14 and set the first of his 13 world records a year later. In addition to his Olympic success, he went on to claim 11 world titles and 10 Commonwealth Games gold medals, six of which he gained in Manchester in 2002.
But he missed the 2005 World Championships after deciding to take a year off and pulled out of the Commonwealth Games this year because of glandular fever.
The Australian sporting icon moved to Los Angeles this year and rumours were rife that he was losing motivation. He was expected to announce his withdrawal from next month’s national trials, ruling him out of next year’s World Championships in Melbourne. However, speculation that he was thinking of going much further than that was confirmed to a packed news conference. There are suggestions that he might now look into a career in television or film.
“Swimming has been a security blanket but I haven’t balanced out my life. I realised I had to prioritise other things and let swimming take a backseat,” Thorpe added. “I’m looking at the next phase and that means I’m realigning what the most important thing is for me to do.
“Swimming is not at the top of the list, which has not happened before.”
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Does that mean we’ll see less of his thorpedo bulges? Oh well, let’s relive some of them here and here.
Oh look! It’s a bulge in the middle of Malcolm in the middle.
For more sportsmen and celebrity bulges, check out The Bulge Report.
(Thanks Kenny G! Do you play the saxophone?)
The 26-year-old French decathlete treats us to his tracksuit bulge. He also competed in the 2004 Olympics and more recently finished 8th in the decathlon at the 2006 European Athletics Championships in Gothenburg.
More bulges after the jump!
Twenty-three year old actor Ryan Merriman began his career doing commercials, print work, vocal performances, and local theater in Oklahoma. He has already developed an extensive list of film and television credits which have enabled him to work with some of Hollywood’s most respected actors. Now with nineteen films, three television series and several guest appearances to his credit Ryan, is well recognized in the industry.
Ryan is currently in preparation to film “Comanche Moon” for CBS. The project, with an all-star cast including Val Kilmer, Karl Urban, Steve Zahn, Rachel Griffiths, Linda Cardellini and Graham Greene, is written by Larry McMurtry and Diana Ossana. Ryan has also finished filming “Home of the Giants” which co-stars Haley Joel Osment. Before the “Home of the Giants “, Ryan filmed “Final Destination 3”, “The Ring 2”, “The Colt” for and “Spin.” “Spin” and “The Ring 2” and “The Colt” are all now available on Video/DVD.
For more sportsmen and celebrity bulges, check out The Bulge Report.
