Ryan Lochte Dominates Field to Win 400 IM Gold Medal

US swimmer Ryan Lochte proudly displays his first gold medal and patriotic dental work. (Fabrice Coffrini)

Very few Olympic swimmers marched in the Opening Ceremony. The long standing duration during the parade would be too much for many of them who began competition today. One of those races today was the men's 400 IM. What made this race an even bigger deal is that it was the first of the much anticipated head-to-head battles between Americans Michael Phelps and Ryan Lochte.

Phelps, of course, is an Olympic legend. In his final Olympics, he looks to go out in golden glory. In the four years since Beijing, Lochte has become the greatest swimmer in the world. Phelps claimed none of that mattered until Lochte proved it on an Olympic stage. Their first opportunity came tonight.

Lochte got a great start right out of the starting blocks. As the race wore on, he seemed to get stronger. Phelps stayed in contention through the first 200 meters, but then started to lose pace the rest of the way. After Lochte led the butterfly leg, Phelps' best stroke, it seemed certain that it was all but over. The only question that remained going into the final leg was whether or not Lochte could beat Phelps' world record.

As it turned out, Lochte (4:05.18) didn't quite have enough left in the tank to capture the record, but he still won the gold by a wide margin. Brazil's Thiago Pereira (4:08.86) and Japan's Kosuke Hagino won the silver and bronze medals, respectively. Meanwhile, Phelps (4:09.28) finished off the medal podium at a disappointing fourth.

For Lochte, the gold medal has to be rewarding. Even though he is the greatest swimmer in the world, he continues to be overshadowed by Phelps. At this point in their careers, Lochte is simply the superior athlete. The main advantages Phelps had coming into the Olympics were experience and confidence. His experience clearly didn't matter in this race. It is uncertain how this will affect Phelps' confidence. He's never really experienced failure, so it will be interesting to see how he bounces back. Round One goes to Ryan Lochte in convincing fashion, but there's still much more swimming to come.