American swimmer, Michael Phelps is the most decorated Olympian of all time. On Thursday, August 11 at the Rio 2016 Olympics, Phelps won his 22nd gold medal in the 200 m individual medley.
A lot has been said about his physique and Wikipedia summaries the theories this way:
…his long, thin torso offers low drag; his arms span 6 feet 7 inches (201 cm)—disproportionate to his height of 6 feet 4 inches (193 cm)—and act as long, propulsive paddles; his relatively short legs lower drag, and perhaps add the speed enhancement of a hydrofoil; his size-14 feet provide the effect of flippers; and his hypermobile ankles can extend beyond the pointe of a ballet dancer, enabling him to whip his feet as if they were fins for maximum thrust through the water. His lungs are nearly twice the size of the average human’s, at 12 litres.
However, there is another yet to be explained attribute. While many sportsmen and women have all manner of tattoos on their bodies, Phelps has circular scars on his back.
It has been revealed that those scars are not tattoos. They are scars of hard therapy!
Phelps undergoes Chinese bleeding cupping, China’s news agency, Xinhua, revealed in a video tweet:
What's on Michael Phelps' back? And do you know how the bleeding cupping works? Don't try it by yourself #XinhuaTV pic.twitter.com/Ms1EGXFfbj
— China Xinhua News (@XHNews) August 12, 2016
