Michael Phelps won a record 28 Olympic medals, including an incredible 23 golds, during his illustrious career in the pool. But he can add another impressive achievement to his list of accolades: he taught ravens how to swim.
No, admittedly not actual ravens but about one-third of the roster of the Baltimore Ravens, which did not know how to swim. It all started with a video posted onto social media, in which Ravens players Marlon Humphrey, Ronnie Stanley, Kyle Hamilton and Charlie Kolar were each standing in a swimming pool single file and then dove side-to-side, later revealing the team's aquatic predicament and asking Phelps, a lifelong Ravens fan who was born in Baltimore, for his help.
Phelps acquiesced and on Tuesday was on-site for the Ravens training camp practice at the Under Armour Performance Center.He and the Ravens traveled via bus to the Loyola College aquatic center, where Phelps, along with members of the Michael Phelps Foundation, helped teach members of the team how to swim.
There was Ravens defensive tackle Travis Jones, who, with the help of a pool noodle and some directions from Phelps himself, worked on kicking while doing the freestyle, with video courtesy of Ryan Mink of the team's website.
Michael Phelps teaching Travis Jones how to swim with the help of a pool noodle = 🥇content pic.twitter.com/SIfjAbm0wH
— Ryan Mink (@ryanmink) August 12, 2025
Then, there was Ravens linebacker Roquan Smith, who worked in the shallow end of the pool with members of Phelps's foundation.
Never stop learning, folks. Georgia native Roquan Smith said he can doggy paddle maybe 20 yards or so, but today he was among the Ravens’ most engaged students learning how to legit swim. pic.twitter.com/u9i7TseUDs
— Ryan Mink (@ryanmink) August 12, 2025
And, of course, because there were plenty of competitive athletes in the building, a race had to be staged. Only, the Ravens players had about a seven second head start on the Olympic legend. But hey, who's counting?
Kyle Hamilton can technically say he beat Michael Phelps in a swimming race. pic.twitter.com/EqsnxBFFE1
— Ryan Mink (@ryanmink) August 12, 2025
Overall, the day was both fun and productive.
"I didn't know what I was getting into," Phelps told the team's website. "I had no idea what their comfort level was. When I see the guys in there and some of the guys who are literally working on floating and breathing, and they're focused on paying attention to those details, it shows their vulnerability, especially when they're uncomfortable.
"It was a special day. Racing some of the fellas in the 25 [meter]. My son raced some of the guys. It was a great day. I truly hope they learned something, hopefully got some confidence, and hopefully can transition into something else."
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