Olympic medalist Michael Phelps still spends most of his time in the water even after retiring. The 31-year-old swimming champ is relishing fatherhood as he teaches his almost one-year-old son, Boomer, about water safety. Phelps also talks about his rumored comeback to the sport that made him an Olympic hero.
Phelps said he's not only trying to instill water safety in his son but also water conservation. He and his wife, Nicole Johnson, however, have yet to see whether the baby would be interested in swimming as a career, just like his dad.
"[If] he's able to fall in love with the sport, that's great," Phelps said, as per ABC News. "If not, I won't be too disappointed."
Boomer, however, might learn to fall in love with swimming just like his dad soon enough. He's always shown spending time in the water on his parents' Instagram feed.
Spring break 2k17 @boomerrphelps @mrs.nicolephelps
A post shared by Michael Phelps (@m_phelps00) on Mar 10, 2017 at 3:26pm PST
Boomer also started swimming lessons at 6-months-old. "Any time you can get them in the water for water safety, the earlier the better," his dad told People.
At least ten people die from drowning every single day for lack of water safety precautions, as per the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). From this number, at least two children below 14-years-old end up as drowning victims every day as well.
Twice or three times a week, Boomer bonds in the backyard pool with his parents. Phelps says his son might turn out to become a better swimmer than him when the time comes.
Meanwhile, Phelps said choosing to retire after his 2016 Olympics feat was the best decision. He affirmed he's done with swimming competitions and has now channeled his focus on his cause with Save Water.
Phelps plans to release short documentaries to raise awareness about water conversation this summer for the #EveryDropCounts campaign with Colgate. "There are people that don't have the privilege of clean water every day and there are people all over the world who are wasting gallons of water per day," he said, as per Fox News. "It's just something so simple to do and so easy."
