He reiterates that visualization works!

"There are times in my sleep when I literally dream my race from start to finish" - Phelps in his 2004 autobiography 'Beneath the Surface' "Other nights ... I visualise to the point that I know exactly what I want to do: dive, glide, stroke, flip, reach the wall, hit the split time to the hundredth, then swim back again for as many times as I need to finish the race."

Impossible is nothing!

“I wouldn't say anything is impossible. I think that everything is possible as long as you put your mind to it and put the work and time into it. I think your mind really controls everything.”

Live life to the fullest !

I want to be able to look back and say, 'I've done everything I can, and I was successful.' I don't want to look back and say I should have done this or that. I'd like to change things for the younger generation of swimmers coming along.

Test your limits then you can increase your capacity !

I want to test my maximum and see how much I can do. And I want to change the world of swimming.

You can't put a limit on anything. The more you dream, the farther you get.

We can succeed irrespective of our background!

Five facts about American swimmer Michael Phelps who won his eighth gold medal in Beijing

*Phelps was diagnosed with Attention-Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD).[4] He started swimming at age seven, partly because of the influence of his sisters and partly to provide him with an outlet for his energy.

* Phelps comes from a broken home in Baltimore. His policeman father Fred and school teacher mother Debbie separated when he was only seven. Elder sister Whitney, also a swimmer, has written that she used the swimming pool as a refuge from the yelling.

* When he was 10, Phelps attended the 1996 Olympic Trials to support sister Whitney. She finished sixth in the 200m butterfly final and failed to make the team. The family cried in the stands. Whitney's career was cut short by four herniated discs.

* In December 2004, Phelps was sentenced to 18 months probation after failing a drink driving test. A judge ordered him to abstain totally from alcohol and illegal drugs during his probation and attend a victim impact panel meeting sponsored by Mothers Against Drunk Driving.

* When Australian swimmer Ian Thorpe said he did not think anyone could win eight races at a single Olympics, Phelps memorised the quote to motivate him for Beijing. He hung a poster of Ian Crocker above his bed after his team mate beat him at the 2003 world championships, to help motivate him for Athens.