Here are some interesting statistics and facts about Michael Phelps

If you were to count Michael Phelps worth in gold he is valued at about Three million. In fact the 2008 Olympics are in all probability worth ten times that amount of money per year. That information is one reason why the current crop of Olympic athletes begin their quest for Olympic gold at an early age.

Here are some more interesting Michael Phelps facts --

Merchandising experts stated that Phelps who's now the most victorious Olympian with 12 Olympic gold medals, will turn out to be the wealthiest pro swimmer ever, far above the income attained by Mark Spitz.

Some are speculating that Phelps can easily rake in a billion dollars. With that kind of money it's safe to say that he may not need to apply for a real job. He can easily live on that kind of money for the next fifty years.

The Olympic Games have become a huge business since the Olympics granted professional athletes the ability to compete twenty yrs past.

Simply no one has made the kind of money earned by athletic megastars comparable to Tiger Woods, Michael Jordan David Beckham or whose names are globally recognized and have cash registers banging out money everywhere.

Eli Portnoy, chief brand strategist at the Portnoy Group, doubted Phelps -- or any Olympian -- would match the earning ability of Woods who is calculated to become the 1st billionaire jock by 2010.

More Michael Phelps facts are -- Currently, Phelps reportedly brings in almost $five million a yr from endorsements altho his agency refused to remark. Portnoy estimates this ascending to approximately thirty million, in the short-run.

Phelps Fact - A Millionaire Already

Phelps is already the prototype of the modern-day American corporate Olympian with the Phelps Machine in full action before he exceeded the record 9 gold tally obtained by Spitz and Carl Lewis, Finnish runner Paavo Nurmi and Soviet gymnast Larysa Latynina.

Phelps, who became a pro swimmer at sixteen and a millionaire by eighteen, has sponsors, agents, lawyers, accountants, charities, his own website in English and Chinese, and even his own logo with a wave-like blue M and red P over his name.

Inside seconds of Phelps's grabbing his tenth gold medal, Visa issued a special version TV commercial commemorating his title as the most decorated Olympian.

"You need to be out there early and establish your affiliation with the property, Michael Phelps," said Michael Lynch, head of global sponsorship management at Visa whose relationship with Phelps dates back to 2002.

"His performance here will benefit us as it will add to the visibility we will get through this affiliation ... and his earning ability will increase, there's no question of that."

One thing is for sure Phelps will also hold the record for cashing in on his Olympic fame, as well he should and those are what I believe to be the most important Michael Phelps facts!