Michael Phelps Father Witnesses Son Earn 22nd Olympic Medals at London 2012

Michael Phelps' father and mother were able to cheer on their son to a historic and unprecedented 22^nd Olympic medal on Saturday; amazingly his 18^th gold medal at the Olympics in total. Phelps now retires as the most decorated Olympian in the history of the Olympic Games.

Like Us on Facebook

Phelps' parents were no doubt cheering him on, seeing him end his career with another gold in the 4x100-meter Medley relay. Mother Debbie has been a prominent figure, seen cheering him on at every single event looking like the most proud mother on the planet. His father Fred, although much less prominent, is no doubt just as proud of his son's achievements.

It was Phelps' 18th gold medal in his career and certainly there is been no better way to say goodbye to a sport that has given him much and also received so much from him.

With his final medal, Phelps did not only add to the debate that he is the greatest Olympian ever, but he further cemented himself in the medals race pantheon with no signs he'll be superseded anytime soon.

Phelps now possesses 22 medals in total - 18 gold, two silver and two bronze.

Phelps possesses six world records, three individual and three team based.

The records are:

100-M Butterfly - 49.82 secs (Aug. 1, 2009)

200-M Butterfly - 1:51.51 secs (July 29, 2009)

400-M Individual Medley - 4:03.84 secs (Aug. 10, 2008)

4x100-M Freestyle Relay - 3:08.24 secs (Aug. 11, 2008)

4x200-M Freestyle Relay - 6:58.55 secs (July 31, 2009)

4x100-M Medley Relay - 3:27.28 secs (Aug. 2, 2009)

Michael Phelps' father, Fred Phelps, is a member of the Maryland State Police. He and Michael's mother Debbie were divorced in 1993 when Michael was just nine years old, and his relationship with his son became more distant from that point onwards.

More recently, Michael Phelps and father Fred have been on closer speaking terms but reports indicate that they are still not what you would describe as close.

During the 2004 Olympics in Athens, Fred and Michael had a brief reconciliation. Phelps won 6 gold and 2 bronze medals at those games, kick starting his Olympic career and introducing the star to the world. However, Fred did not travel to Beijing in 2008 to China to watch his son score an amazing 8 golds, instead staying to watch the events from home in the United States.

Since that time Fred has maintained a relatively low profile saying that he doesn't want his disjointed relationship with his son to distract from his amazing achievements.

Forbes estimates Michael Phelps' net worth before the London Olympics to be about $40 million. With new endorsements and deals once he returns to Baltimore, those figures will probably rise quickly.

According to Debbie Phelps who was recently interviewed by Yahoo Sports, one of Phelps' immediate plans after retiring is playing more golf. The swimmer's mother told Yahoo that Phelps plans on playing golf in various courses around the world. She even opened the possibility that Phelps would return for the Rio Olympics in 2016 insisting that 'never is never' but confirmed that for now his son would be hanging the goggles and leaving the pool.