It's all ahead full throttle for Michael Phelps and his ambitious tilt at Mark Spitz's Olympic record of seven gold medals in Beijing next year after a stupendous world championships.

 

The 21-year-old American phenomenon was in a class of his own winning a record seven gold medals and setting five world records, one of them in a relay.

 

It would have been an unprecedented eight gold but his teammates botched a changeover in the medley relay and were disqualified while he was being rested from the heats for the anticipated final and gold.

 

Spitz's standard has stood since the 1972 Munich Olympics but now Phelps is being hailed as the greatest swimmer of all-time.

 

He will irrefutably settle that debate in Beijing if he can replicate his dynamic performances from the Melbourne championships, helped by a winning mistake-free medley relay performance.

 

"Swimmers usually peak in their early twenties so I'm hitting my peak," Phelps said.

 

"I don't see myself retiring before 2012 (London Olympics). I have more goals to do, more things to accomplish and I'm not stopping until they are done.

 

"I want to be one of the greatest swimmers of all time. I want to be able to raise the bar for swimming in America. That's a huge goal of mine."

 

The 12th FINA championships will be forever remembered for Phelps' exploits in the pool, claiming the 100/200m butterfly, 200m freestyle, 200/400m medleys and the 4x100m and 4x200m freestyle relays.

 

But Phelps embossed the swims with world records in the 200m butterfly (1:52.09), 200m freestyle (1:43.86), 200m medley (1:54.98), 400m medley (4:06.22) and as the lead-off swimmer in the 4x200m freestyle relay (7:03.24).

 

He now owns four individual world records (200m butterfly, 200m freestyle and the 200/400m medleys) among the 20 long-course he has set in six years' competition.

 

Only Mark Spitz (26) holds more world records.

 

Phelps surpassed Grant Hackett as the most decorated swimmer in world championship history with 20 medals, comprising 17 gold and three bronze in four meets.

 

"I've picked up a lot of speed over the last year after a solid year of lifting, it's definitely given me more muscle. I've got more speed," Phelps said.

 

American head men's coach and Phelps' long-time mentor Bob Bowman said he had been expecting something special in Melbourne.

 

"It seems to be really paying dividends because he hasn't really lost any endurance but he's gained strength and speed which I think will help move him to the next level," Bowman said.

 

Looking at his potential schedule in Beijing, Bowman said: "He's probably swimming the same number of events over the same number of days.

 

"So what events they will be might be different because the order of events is different and until we know the Beijing programme I don't think you can really say what his program will be."

 

Spitz, who was at the world championships, believes Phelps will suffer most from the schedule change of morning finals because events will now be dragged out over three days.

 

The Beijing program is likely to have heats in the evening, semifinals next morning and the finals the following morning totalling three days for one event.

 

Spitz said it was likely to be a tough programme, but is hopeful Phelps can match his Munich 1972 record.

 

"I hope I live long enough to see it happen," Spitz said. "Records are made to be broken.

 

"I think Michael Phelps does have a chance. But just as the same happened for me, a lot of things have to go right."

 

(China Daily via Agencies April 3, 2007)