Phelps beats ‘rival’ Le Clos in swimming final

It was a disappointing morning for Chad le Clos, and South Africa, on Wednesday when he failed to retain his Olympic title in the 200m butterfly.

The 24-year-old swimmer finished fourth in the 200m butterfly final after relinquishing second place in the final lap.

There was hype around the race as the battle between Le Clos and his American rival Michael Phelps intensified.

Four years ago, Le Clos surprised the world at the London games when he defeated Phelps in the 200m butterfly.

Since then, the rivalry between the two swimmers has been tense with many claiming Phelps came out of retirement last year to beat Le Clos.

A video, which shows Le Clos shadow-boxing in front of an irritated looking Phelps, went viral on Sunday.

According to Citizen, Le Clos faced a barrage of criticism from American fans for his shadow-boxing stint.

Le Clos managed to grab sliver in the 200m freestyle on Tuesday.

Wednesday’s swimming final didn’t disappoint and Phelps took the lead early on with Le Clos a close second.

In the last 20m however, the South African ran out of steam, allowing Phelps to claim his 20^th Olympic medal.

In Sevens Rugby, the Blitzbokke beat Spain 24-0 in their opening game of the Rio Olympic Games.

In football, Banyana Banyana managed to hold Brazil to a 0-0 draw in their final game of the Olympics.

Two defeats in their opening two matches meant the South African women’s team were already eliminated heading into Wednesday’s encounter.

When a picture says it all… #LeClos #MichaelPhelps #Rio2016 🏊 pic.twitter.com/O9OIxin7Ao

— Maps Maponyane (@MapsMaponyane) August 10, 2016