Amanda Beard Denies Dating Michael Phelps – But Says He's Not 'Nasty'
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Amanda Beard Denies Dating Michael Phelps – But Says He's Not 'Nasty'
By Cynthia Wang
Originally posted Wednesday August 20, 2008 09:40 AM EDT
Olympic swimmer and model Amanda Beard swears she was just joking
around Tuesday when she went on the air with 93.7 KRQ Tucson's Johnjay
and Rich in the Morning. Familiar with the crew, she mock-suffered
through questions about her romantic life, specifically rumors that
she's dating Beijing Games hero Michael Phelps.
Asked point blank what their status was, Beard stated, "I am not
dating Michael Phelps." When pressed on whether they'd ever kissed,
the 26-year-old used her best Valley Girl delivery to say, "Eww! No.
Come on." Then, when told that Phelps might dream about dating her,
she replied, "Eww, that's so nasty! ... Come on, I have really good
taste."
Now Beard is catching flak for her flippancy – and she wants to set
the record straight. "Everyone who knows me knows I can be a jokester,
but I guess I took it too far," the four-time Olympian tells PEOPLE.
"I never meant to say anything rude about Michael. I am 100-percent
sorry for what I said. I take full responsibility for it."
Beard, speaking earnestly, adds, "When we are sitting in the stands,
we are very grateful that Michael swims for the U.S. It's cool to be a
part of the team on which Michael won eight gold medals. We know each
other and Michael is like my little brother. He jokes around me all
the time and it's all good-natured. But obviously people who don't
know me can take it the wrong way."
For Phelps's part, the 23-year told Extra that he has a celebrity
crush on Cameron Diaz and insisted, "No, I'm not dating Amanda Beard.
I'll say that. I think she has a boyfriend."
He would be right: Beard has been dating a photographer for the past
three years. "He's been here [at the Olympics] – he's always with me,"
she says of her boyfriend. "He's totally fine with [the romance
rumors]. This is just the way things go sometimes. But to Michael, I
am so sorry for the things I said."
Dan
He could UG himself to death.
Let's hope he takes that endorsment money and fixes his teeth and pays
the full $10.00 for a Supercuts haircut.
The man is hideous. Yech, he's almost as ugly as that girl who played
Blossom.
And what did he do? He swam a from one side of a pool to the other
faster than a bunch of other people. Who cares? Is this what he spent
23 years of his life training for? Not only him all those athletes.
Even a guy working at Taco Bell acomplishes more. At least he's giving
food to hungry people. Phelps is just swimming. Like all other
overhyped athletes, at least Bart Conner and Mitch Gaylord were good
to look at.
Phelps can't talk, hey with all that money hire a speech coach. Some
dumbass says "he's wet behind the ears." He's TWENTY THREE, that is a
grown man he should know how to talk decent. It's not like he's five.
So he swam from one side of a pool to the other faster than anyone
else. BIG DEAL. Do you realize this is ALL he has done with his life,
practice to swim from one side of a pool to the other. That's what
he's trained for, that's not an accomplishment that's an embarrasment
CliffB
> http://www.people.com/people/article/0,,20220264,00.html?xid=rss-toph...
So she WAS actually cracking about his somewhat grotesque rictus face.
Just so he's OK with that. Which he is most likely, since surely he's
got the swim groupies offering themselves up to him at an easy pace.
Now half the nation's eligible female population will be hounding him
down for a little breast stroke and butterfly relay action.