Phelps may be planning comeback for Rio Olympics

Michael Phelps has rejoined the U.S. drug-testing program, the strongest signal yet that he's planning a comeback for the Rio de Janeiro Olympics.

Phelps told The Associated Press on Thursday that “nothing is set in stone” though clearly he has enjoyed getting back into shape _ he's down about 15 pounds (7 kilograms) _ and working out with his former team at the North Baltimore Aquatic Club.

“If I decide to keep going and swim again, then I'll compete,” Phelps told the AP in an exclusive telephone interview from Minneapolis, where he is attending the Arena Grand Prix this weekend.

“If I don't,” he added, letting out a big laugh, “I guess I'll re-retire. Just don't compare me to Brett Favre.”

The U.S. Anti-Doping Agency said Phelps was among the athletes who underwent doping tests in the third quarter, the period ending Sept. 30. He was tested twice.

His former coach and close friend, Bob Bowman, said Phelps actually re-entered the program near the end of the second quarter, but he wasn't tested and therefore wasn't listed that time in USADA's quarterly report. He would be eligible to compete again in March, according to Bowman.

Each week, Phelps said, he's working out for a couple of days in the pool, a couple of days in the weight room, and one or two days on his core training.

“I just think he's in a place where he's feeling good about swimming,” Bowman said. “If he chooses to compete, he's got some time. I like having the ability to do it. To be perfectly honest, he's not anywhere near being able to compete in a meet or anything like that. We're just getting started on improving his fitness. We'll see where that goes.”

By subjecting himself to drug testing, Phelps has given himself plenty of time to go through an entire season before the next major meet, the 2015 world championships in Russia, an important steppingstone to the Rio Games the following summer.

FINA requires an athlete to be tested for at least nine months before taking part in sanctioned events.

“This may not go anywhere,” Bowman said. “We don't have an event picked out or anything like that. There's no grand scheme. It just sort of makes sense that he can make some choices if he wants to.”

Further stoking speculation about a comeback, Phelps turned up at the meet in Minneapolis and even did some laps in the diving well.

“I just splashed around a little bit,” he said. “The guys are swimming laps around me. But at least I'm exercising and trying to get back into some respectable shape.”

Phelps attended the world championships in Barcelona last summer, but he seemed even more pumped about being on hand for one of the more mundane events.

“I just wanted to come up here and see how a meet was,” he said. “This is kind of like a normal meet. Barcelona was not a normal meet. That's a big boy meet. Just being around this is exciting for me. It really has been a part of my life ever since I was a kid.”

Phelps is the most decorated athlete in Olympic history. He captured 18 gold medals and 22 medals overall at the last three Summer Games, shattering the previous marks. He is best known for breaking Mark Spitz's record for a single Olympics by winning eight gold medals in Beijing in 2008.

Phelps retired at age 27 after winning six more medals at last summer's London Olympics, adamant that he had no intention of competing again. But he's moving close to a comeback.

“If I do really start getting excited and wanting to do it, I can make that choice,” Phelps said. “If not, at least it's something we can say we were prepared for.”

Phelps doesn't need the money, of course, having earned tens of millions of dollars in endorsements during his career, and he remains a marketable name, even in retirement. If he does come back, it will likely be another case of an athlete who simply missed the thrill of competition, the day-to-day grind of proving himself against other top swimmers.

“There are a lot of things that really excite me ... that get me motivated,” he said. “But I swam for 20 years. That's something that's going to be very, very hard to top.” (AP)