No-one was more excited to see Michael Phelps back in the pool than his greatest rival Ryan Lochte, according to Reuters. On dry land, the pair are good friends and have been on the same teams at Olympics and world championships, but in the water, they are the fiercest of competitors. It's a friendly rivalry that has benefitted both men, forcing them to push themselves to new limits in a bid to outdo each other. Like Jack Nicklaus and Arnold Palmer or Roger Federer and Rafa Nadal, they share a deep and mutual respect but neither likes to lose. "Racing against Michael is probably the hardest thing to do and I love it," Lochte said. "l've been racing against him since 2004 and I know that every time I go on those blocks and he's right next to me, it's going to be one of the hardest races. "I know he's going to push me to the limit and my body to places it doesn't want to go, and I love that." Like everyone else, Lochte was in awe of what Phelps did in Beijing when he won an unprecedented eight gold medals but rather than concede defeat, he used it to motivate himself. Instead of ducking Phelps, he decided to take him on. He gave up junk food and devoted himself to a brutal training routine which paid off when he beat Phelps in two head-to-head races at the 2011 world championships. At the 2012 London Olympics, Lochte easily beat Phelps in the final of the 400 metres individual medley but Phelps turned the tables on him in the 200 IM. In the 4x200m freestyle relay, they joined forces, winning gold for the United States. Although Phelps' total of 18 Olympic gold medals dwarfs Lochte's five, Lochte is the only swimmer to have enjoyed any regular success against the sport's most decorated competitor. "It's a fun, friendly rivalry that we have," Phelps said. "I think we just bring the best out of one another. "When we get in the water I'm going to do everything I can to try and get my hand on the wall before him in every single race and it's the same for him." Their mutual admiration was evident this week when Phelps made his comeback to competitive swimming after retiring following the London Olympics. -- SPA 23:01 LOCAL TIME 20:01 GMT تغريد
