His moustache, too, made an unscheduled appearance.

Michael Phelps, the US swim star who hates nothing more than being compared to Spitz, did his cause no good by turning up for a news conference yesterday sporting a moustache similar to Spitz's.

Spitz wore the fabled moustache when he won a record seven swimming titles at the 1972 Munich Games.

Phelps has perfected his compatriot's look and, in Beijing this month, he is hoping for a flawless performance in the pool to go along with it.

The 23-year-old swimmer, who harvested six golds at the 2004 Athens Olympics, is gunning for eight this time round.

Doing so would make him the Spitz of his generation, but try not to say that to his newly-whiskered face - the result of some 'messing around yesterday''.

'As far as the Mark Spitz thing goes, I've said it before and I'll say it again,' an exasperated Phelps told reporters at the Singapore Island Country Club yesterday.

'I want to be the first Michael Phelps and not the second Mark Spitz.'

He quickly added: 'I don't mean to downplay his accomplishments. For what he did, it was and still is the greatest Olympic performance of all time.

'I'm just lucky that I can be in a position to hopefully do something the world has never seen.'

To overhaul his countryman, Phelps will have to touch the wall first in all eight races he has entered in Beijing.

His schedule in the Chinese capital mirrors that of Athens four years ago: The 200m freestyle, 200m and 400m individual medleys, the 100m and 200m butterfly and all the three relays.

Lesser swimmers would gasp under such a burden.

Phelps, on the other hand, chooses to laugh it off.

On the rare occasions he was not addressed during yesterday's 20-minute session, he shared a few chuckles with his teammates and US head coach Mark Schubert.

When asked if the expectations were weighing on his mind, he pointed a cheeky finger at the reporters and said: 'The only pressure I get is from you guys.

'If I can come in faster than what I was at the Olympic trials, then that means I am successful. If that means not winning gold medals then that is fine, I am still successful.

'Who knows what will happen in Beijing, time will tell.

'But I'm happy with where I am. I've been swimming well, I've been feeling good in the water. As of right now, I feel the best I have ever felt.'

If all goes well, all that he will wear on his face at the winners' podium is a look of triumph.

The Spitz record would have gone - as well as the moustache, which he plans to shave off next week.

tvoon@sph.com.sg