MESA, Ariz. — There are two things to know about Michael Phelps as he stands about one month until U.S. Olympic swim trials, and with almost two months until the 2016 Olympics in Rio de Janeiro:
1) He is svelte, sleek and powerful, and feeling as strong as he did in the lead-up to Beijing in ‘08.
2) He is nitpicking, finding fewer and fewer things to criticize after his most recent races.
After he swam the 200-meter individual medley in 1:57.90, the third-fastest time in the world in the event this year and Phelps’ fastest since 2003, Phelps critiqued his freestyle stroke.