Phelps Resumes Gold Haul, Takes 6th Beijing Medal In 200 Individual Medley

Beijing, China (AHN) - Michael Phelps took a day off from all the glitz and spotlight in Beijing.

Back on the water Friday morning, Phelps resumed seeing gold. History was running in all cylinders again.

Phelps waylaid his foes to take the gold in the 200-meter individual medley for his sixth Beijing medal and 12th of his career at the National Aquatics Center, more popularly known as the Water Cube.

The American phenomenon also shattered his own previous mark by defeating his rivals with a time of 1 minute, 54.23 seconds.

He timed in 1:54.80 in the U.S. Olympic trials last month in Omaha, NE.

The silver went to Czech Republic's Laszlo Cesh while Phelps' compatriot Ryan Lochte took the bronze.

The win keeps alive Phelps' goal of taking eight gold medals in Beijing, an astonishing mark that would put him past Mark Spitz, who won seven in the 1972 Munich Olympics.

In the current Olympics, Phelps already rewrote the record books with 12 gold medals in his career.

He's also won the 400-m IM, the 400-m freestyle relay, the 200-m freestyle, the 200-m butterfly and the 800-m freestyle relay.

He's due to swim in two more events-the 100-meter butterfly on Saturday and the 400-meter medley relay on Sunday.