Photo by Phil Ellsworth / ESPN Images(NEW YORK) — U.S. Olympic swimming star Michael Phelps will be the American flagbearer for the Opening Ceremony of this summer’s Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro.
The honor was announced on Wednesday, two days before the ceremony to be held at the Maracanã Stadium.
Phelps will be swimming in his fifth Olympic Games, becoming the first American male swimmer to qualify for five Games, and only the second American swimmer overall to do so, behind Dara Torres. He previously made history winning eight gold medals at the 2008 Beijing Games, and by setting records for the most career gold medals (18) and overall medals (22).
Phelps will compete in at least three individual events this summer.
“I’m honored to be chosen, proud to represent the U.S., and humbled by the significance of carrying the flag and all it stands for,” Phelps said in a statement. “For Sydney, I just wanted to make the team. For Athens, I wanted to win gold for my country. For Beijing, I wanted to do something nobody else had done. In London, I wanted to make history. And now, I want to walk in the Opening Ceremony, take it all in, represent America in the best possible way and make my family proud.”
“This time around,” Phelps says, “it’s about so much more than medals.”
