Rio 2016: The journey of Michael Phelps from 2000 to 2016

Phelps' has had monumental achievements in the water combined with well-documented controversies in his personal life

Michael Phelps (Getty)

On Friday evening, Michael Phelps will carry the US flag in the opening ceremony of the Rio Olympics.

Rio will be the fifth Olympics for the swimmer who is already the most decorated Olympian of all time having won 22 medals over the past three Olympics.

While athletic success has come in huge amounts, the attention on Phelps has at times surrounded issues in his personal life rather than athletic achievements.

2000

Phelps qualified for the Sydney Olympics. At the age of 15, he became the youngest American male swimmer at the games in 68 years however he returned without a medal.

2004

The following games in Athens were going to be a completely different turn of events for the Baltimore-born athlete who at age 19 came away from the Greek games with six golds and two bronzes.

Shortly after the games, Phelps was arrested for a DUI charge in Maryland, USA. He pleaded guilty to the lesser charge of driving while impaired and received 18 months probation. As part of his punishment he also had to speak to high school students about the dangers of drinking and driving.

2008

At the Beijing Olympics, Phelps surpassed the swimmer Mark Spitz’ record of the most golds at an Olympics by winning eight.

2009

A year after setting records in China, Phelps was photographed inhaling from a glass pipe at a party. The pictures were splashed on the front page of the now defunct News of the World.

Phelps apologised for the “regrettable” incident: “I’m 23 years old and despite the successes I’ve had in the pool, I acted in a youthful and inappropriate way, not in a manner people have come to expect from me,” he said.

Following the incident, Kellogg' decided not to renew their sponsorship contract with the olympian and he was suspended from USA swimming for three months.

2012

Phelps returned to London for the Olympics and won four golds and two silvers bringing his Olympic medal total to 22.

2014

Two years after the London games, Phelps received another DUI charge. After his arrest, he was suspended from USA swimming for six months. He also completed a 45-day stay at a rehab facility in Arizona.

Three months after the arrest, Phelps pleaded guilty to drink-driving and received 18 months of supervised probation and a one-year suspended jail sentence.

2016

This year, in the run-up to the games, Phelps has spoken openly about the struggles he had with alcohol around the time of his 2014 arrest.

“I was at the lowest place I’ve ever been,” he told Today in April. “Honestly, I sort of at one point, felt like I didn’t want to see another day, I felt like it should be over.”

This year has also seen the arrival of Phelps' first child with his long term partner Nicole Johnson. The pair welcomed their son Boomer Phelps in May.