Phelps Barely into Final

Michael Phelps barely qualified for the final of the 400 meter individual medley.  The second seeded swimming, Phelps swam in the penultimate heat, with the top eight times qualifying for the final.  Confident that his time would easily move him through to the final, Phelps barely edged out Hungary's Laszlo Cseh, the bronze medalist in Athens and silver medalist in Beijing.  The final heat was won by Chad le Clos of South Africa as Ryan Lochte had built up a big lead and cruised into second place.  That final heat was very fast and Phelps was nearly knocked out of the final, and medal favorite Cseh was knocked out.  Still expect Phelps and Lochte to battle it out for gold, but they will be in lanes three (Lochte) and one (Phelps) rather than the middle of the pool.