NBC News (DR) / Gold Bond (DR)

A true clown when he wasn’t destroying his opponents, Shaquille O’Neal has never been afraid to challenge himself personally.

In the late 2000s, he set out to beat the legendary Michael Phelps in swimming. The result was… surprising.

Shaquille O’Neal has not only become a basketball legend through his exploits in matches.

He is also one of its most cult players thanks to his ability to put on a show and, above all, to be a clown all the time, whether on or off the court.

Obviously, companies had the ideal character to make commercial collaborations… and it was the same for the studios.

Between 2009 and 2010, ABC launched the mini-series Shaq Vs. in which Big Diesel challenged sports legends in their respective disciplines.

Among his “adversaries” was a certain Michael Phelps, considered the greatest Olympian of all time.

Shaq then faced the American swimmer in a Maryland pool… and the Hall of Famer surprisingly did well.

When Shaquille O’Neal faced Michael Phelps… in swimming

So yes, Phelps started with a handicap since he had to swim 50 meters against 25 for the four-time NBA champion , and the latter could start as soon as the legend with 23 Olympic gold medals had covered half of his first length.

But facing a monster like him, Shaqtus was not at all sure he could win… Internet users were also impressed by his performance in the pool.

Sweet Jesus…Shaq is better than I thought.

Imagine Shaq as a swimmer, it could have been dangerous

Beating Michael Phelps in swimming, that was the challenge that Shaquille O’Neal had set himself. And in his own way (as well as with many advantages), the Big Diesel had succeeded! It should also be noted that the former Lakers center was doing rather well in the water.