Phelps tied the fourth-fastest time

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MESA, Ariz. -- Michael Phelps tied the fourth-fastest time in the world this year swimming the 100-meter butterfly in his first competition in nearly two years. His comeback has gotten off to a strong start albeit with a much different approach than he took in winning 22 medals over three Olympics. After a 20-month retirement, Phelps resumed training last September with his longtime coach Bob Bowman at the North Baltimore Aquatic Center in his hometown. But he didnt pick up the grueling regimen that had ruled his life since he was a teenager. Phelps has slowly started back and now trains just once a day in the afternoon. No double or triple sessions or plowing through thousands of meters a day. Call this comeback Phelps 2.0. While his workload will go up eventually, for now Phelps is doing half the amount of training he did during the height of career, when he won a record eight gold medals at the 2008 Beijing Olympics. "Im sort of experimenting with stuff that I didnt have the guts to do before, like not swim as far," Bowman said. "Im very pleased with how hes doing." This relaxed approach appears to suit both Phelps and Bowman just fine. Their decades-long partnership -- rare in a sport where swimmers frequently change coaches -- survived fiery clashes as Phelps grew up and rebelled against Bowmans hard-nosed ways. "Our last several years together, it really wasnt much fun for everybody," the coach said. Without committing to specifics, Phelps seems intent on swimming fewer events and shorter races this time around. He turns 29 in June, and as the most decorated Olympian in history, his place in the record books is secure. "Im not putting any pressure on myself," he said. "Im just enjoying myself right now." At the Arena Grand Prix meet in Mesa, he competed in just two events -- the 100 fly (he finished second to Ryan Lochte) and the 50 freestyle, where he instead used a butterfly stroke and finished 42nd . Phelps time of 52.13 seconds in the 100 tied for fourth-quickest in the world this year. In his other event, he swam 50 metres of fly in 24.06, faster than his split time a day earlier in the 100 fly. His biggest challenge last fall was to lose the 30 pounds he had piled on since retiring after the 2012 Olympics. Hes gone from a high of 225 to 194 -- about seven more pounds than he raced at in London. "Hes not fat. Hes been pretty strong in the weight room," Bowman said. "Where hes lacking is aerobic fitness. Hes got a good start on it." Phelps figures to improve that aspect during upcoming high-altitude training in Colorado. Bowmans plan calls for Phelps to work his way up to recovering faster so he can handle multiple individual races a day and swim anywhere from one to three relays. But the coach said his star pupil will never go back to the grind he put in to win all those Olympic medals. "Hes much happier doing the training," Bowman said. "As long as hes enjoying it like he is, its good for everybody. Thats what I am concerned about." Phelps is entered in the last two Grand Prix meets of the season, in North Carolina in May and California in June. Those are tuneups for the U.S. national championships in August, where teams will be chosen for the Pan Pacific Championships later that month and next years world meet. "I know if I really want to compete at a high level, I have to be ready by this summer," he said. Whether all this leads to swimming at the 2016 Rio Olympics, Phelps remains mum. "I always have goals and things that I want to achieve," he said. "This has been an amazing journey that Ive gone on so far, and I just hope it continues." In Saturdays finals at Skyline Aquatic Center, Olympian Katie Ledecky won the 800 free in 8 minutes, 20.10 seconds. Katie Hoff, making her own comeback after taking time off, dropped 1.55 seconds from her preliminary time to win the 200 individual medley in 2:12.92. In mens races, Olympian Tyler Clary won the 200 fly in 2:00.39; Arkady Vyatchanin of Russia won the 100 backstroke in 54.40; and Darian Townsend of South Africa took the 200 IM in 2:02.07. Air Max 90 Cheap . After all, the No. 8 seed is chasing far loftier goals. Raonic, from Thornhill, Ont., defeated American Jack Sock 6-3, 6-4, 6-4 in Wimbledons second round on Thursday. Cheap Air Max 90 Sale . 2015 Oscar nomination pending. Here is an open letter from Steven Stamkos to his fans: When I shot this final Moment Zero film last August, it was a fun few days on set with Coke Zero and Jordan Eberle in my hometown of Markham. http://www.airmax90discount.com/. - The infectious smile was missing from Nam Nguyen last week. Air Max 90 Free Shipping . -- Craig Anderson has quite a record against his former team, the Florida Panthers. Air Max 90 Wholesale . -- Kansas City Royals right-hander Luke Hochevar will have Tommy John surgery that will sideline the pitcher for the season.NEW YORK – Colby Rasmus returned from a 33-game absence on Wednesday night and manager John Gibbons was eager to get another big bat in the lineup to provide his club a threat near the bottom of the order. “He gives us another power threat,” said Gibbons. “We havent had a whole lot of power lately.” The slumping Blue Jays, losers of seven of 10 entering Wednesdays play, activated Rasmus from the disabled list and sent his replacement, Anthony Gose, back to Triple-A Buffalo. It was a long road to recovery for Rasmus, whod been on the disabled list since May 13 with tightness in his right hamstring. Rasmus initially thought the injury would heal in a matter of days. “Its always a learning experience,” said Rasmus. “Pushing yourself too quick or too slow. Every injury is different. This is a different injury and I just had to learn what I did and, hopefully, next time Ill be able to correct it faster. But Im here now and ready to play.” Rasmus is one of the games streakier hitters. When hes hot, he hits home runs in bunches. When he slumps, he swings and misses a lot and strikes out often. In 37 games this season, Rasmus is hitting .222/.266/.489 (.755 OPS) with nine home runs. Twice this season, he has hit three home runs in a span of four games (April 10-13 and May 1-4), which account for six of his nine long balls. Still, Rasmus has struck out in 32.8 per cent of his plate appearances this season, compared to 29.5 per cent last year and 24.6 per cent for his career. “Yeah, I mean hes always been that way,” said Gibbons. “You wish it wasnt so often but, you know, I mean he can run into some balls too and make a difference that way.” LIND CONFIDENT HELL AVOID DISABLED LIST On Wednesday, the Blue Jays played a third consecutive game without the services of designated hitter/first baseman Adam Lind. Linds been down since fouling a ball off his right foot in Saturdays loss at Baltimore. He suffered a deep bone bruise and, on Sunday, was using crutches and wearing a walking boot. Hes since come out of the boot and hit off a tee on Wednesday afternoon. “Theres been improvements every day,” said Lind. “Now, were just working on a tape job to try and relieve as much stress or pain on my foot as we can so I can get in the lineup.” Lind wasnt sure whether he could pinch-hit onn Wednesday night.dddddddddddd Manager John Gibbons has a three-man bench, not including Lind, and the Blue Jays may be hesitant to use Lind in case he ultimately requires a trip to the disabled list. A DL stint, if needed, could be made retroactive to Sunday (making Lind eligible to return on June 30) as long as he doesnt appear in a game. Based on the progress hes made, Lind isnt planning on being placed on the disabled list. “Its not constant,” said Lind of the pain in his foot. “When I sit still it doesnt hurt. I have a tape job right now and its helped a lot. I hit with spikes, it wasnt so well. I hit with turfs and it was much better. If I pinch hit, Ill be in my turfs.” POWER OUTAGE The Blue Jays are slumping after winning 15 of 17 games. Theyve dropped seven of their last 10, thanks in part to a significant decrease in the number of home runs theyve been hitting. Toronto leads the major leagues with 93 home runs but has hit only four in the last 10 games. Jose Reyes (June 9, June 17) has two of them. The other two were hit by Edwin Encarnacion (June 9) and Juan Francisco (June 13). The Blue Jays won the June 9 game, 5-4 over Minnesota and the June 13 game, 4-0 over Baltimore but lost the June 17 game, 3-1 to New York. Entering Wednesdays play, Jose Bautista was without a home run in 10 games, his longest drought of the season. PRAY FOR NO RAIN The five-day forecast for New York City suggests the Yankees wont have a rainout during their three-game weekend series with the Baltimore Orioles. Thats important to the Blue Jays because right-hander Masahiro Tanaka, who beat Toronto on Tuesday night to improve his record to 11-1, is scheduled to start on Sunday. Naturally, the Blue Jays would like Tanaka to pitch against another divisional opponent. Add to that the fact the Yankees visit Toronto for three games starting on Monday. If the Yankees have a rainout this weekend, Tanakas start could be pushed back into the series with the Blue Jays. As it stands, Toronto is due to miss Tanaka next week. The Yankees are 12-2 in games Tanaka starts and 24-31 otherwise. TWO MORE DRAFT PICKS SIGN The Blue Jays formally announced the signings of third-round pick, left-handed pitcher Nick Wells (83rd overall) and sixth-round pick, left-handed pitcher Grayson Huffman (174th overall). Wells is 18 years old. Huffman is 19 years old. China NFL Jerseys Cheap Nike NFL Jerseys