Date:17/08/2008 URL: http://www.thehindu.com/2008/08/17/stories/2008081752780100.htm

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Phelps matches Spitz

— Photo: AP

MAGNIFICENT SEVEN: Michael Phelps tied Mark Spitz’s 1972 record of seven gold medals in a single Olympics when he beat Milorad Cavic of Serbia by the narrowest of margins to win the 100-metre butterfly race in Beijing on Saturday. The 23-year-old American with a two-metre wingspan got his hands to the wall a hundredth of a second ahead of Cavic in a magnificent finish. Should the American team win the 4x100 medley relay on Sunday, Phelps will leave Spitz behind.