Michael Phelps is looking more like the greatest Olympian ever, flying to 51.32 in the 100 butterfly in Canada

The Canada Cup is Michael Phelps' taper testing competition. He hops up to Canada, revs his engine on a few events, and adjusts his training accordingly for the season's biggest competition (which is the 2011 World Championships this year). After winning the 100m fly in 51.32, Phelps feels pretty good, as he should. That swim puts him back on top of the world rankings.  

Michael Phelps has taken his punches since 2010.  Phelps is out of shape, losing his edge...nolonger the greatest. Of course this has all been during swimming's down-cycle, the Sahara Desert-vast two years in the middle of the Olympic quadrennial.

Phelps, the first truly professional swimmer in history (turning pro at 16, training to win gold and big bucks from that tender age), knows exactly what he needs to do to win.  He also knows winning during a non-Olympic year is nearly meaningless. Inside the swimming community, we appreciate world championships, but the rest of the globe's sports-following fans yawn...

It's all about the Olympics, and Phelps will be ready. His 51.32 unshaven 100m fly was a tiny indicator of that, a red dot blinking on the Olympic GPS...heading directly toward London.