Finding it hard to explain his marijuana-smoking pic to his mother, Michael Phelps has been rethinking whether or not he will compete in the upcoming 2012 Olympics.
- Feb 6, 2009
AceShowbiz - In an interview with the Baltimore Sun, his first ever interview since his smoking-marijuana pic was made public last week, Michael Phelps admitted it "definitely wasn't easy" for him to explain to his mother, Debbie, about what is going on. "Seeing my mom reminded me of how it was the day after I got my DUI, and I swore to myself I'd never do that again," he said. "This is just a stupid thing of mine that I did, and I have to live with it."
"We've been talking a lot," Phelps recounted further. He then added that following the incident he's been spending the past several days with his mother and his two sisters. "I've been able to get back to my family. It's part of my life I need back," he revealed. "It's something I am going to have to live with, and something I'll have to grow from."
Speaking of the lesson he learns from the marijuana-smoking pic scandal, Phelps said, "This was stupid, and I know this won't happen again. It's obviously bad judgment, and it's something I'm not proud of at all. I will say that with the mistakes that I've made in my life, I've learned from them. Every one of them. And I've become a better person. That's what I plan to do from here. It's definitely not what I wanted, and it's clearly not what my mom wanted."
During the same interview, Phelps told the Baltimore Sun that being put under the media scrutiny due to his smoking-marijuana pic has made him contemplating whether he will compete in the upcoming 2012 Olympics or not. About that matter, he said, "This is a decision of mine that I'm not going to make today and I'm not going to make tomorrow. It's going to require a lot of time and energy and a lot of thinking for myself - but also talking to Bob [coach Bob Bowman] and talking to my family and just deciding what I want to do."
He continued, "Yeah, there are still goals that I have in the pool, 100 percent. But I'm not going to let anything stand in my way. If I decide to walk away, I'll decide to walk away on my own terms. If it's now, if it's four years, who knows. But it is something I need to think about and decide what I want to do."
In the meantime, authorities in Columbia, S.C. are still doing investigation concerning Michael Phelps' marijuana-smoking pic. Under South Carolina law, possession of 1 ounce or less of marijuana is a misdemeanor that carries a fine up to $200 and 30 days in jail. The record-breaking Olympian swimmer, thus, is facing possible criminal charges.
