Betting markets have Olympic swimmer Michael Phelps as the underdog for his upcoming race against a great white shark, which is set to air on the Discovery Channel in July.
Bet Online, an internet gambling site, gives Phelps a 21 percent chance of winning. If somebody bet $100 on Phelps to win, they’d rake in $375 in winnings if Phelps pulls it off. Phelps is racing a great white shark as part of “Shark Week.”
“Probably for the first time ever, Phelps is an underdog,” Dave Mason, a spokesperson Bet Online.ag, told The Daily Caller News Foundation. “This was perfect opportunity for betting. So we did.
The Discovery Channel hasn’t provided any details on how Phelps will race the shark, so gamblers aren’t sure of the exact circumstances of the bet.
“We don’t know the details of how the race is gonna happen,” Mason said. “Its a big secret. Its not a ton of people betting yet, but there’s some coming in and over 90 percent are placing their bets on the shark.”
Great white sharks are capable of swimming at almost 35 miles per hour, according to the Smithsonian Museum of Natural History. Michael Phelps’ swimming speed capped off at about 6 miles per hour in 2010, according to the sports site ESPN.
“They are one of the fastest and most efficient predators on the planet: Sharks. He is our greatest champion to ever get in the water: Michael Phelps,” states the Discovery Channel press release. “39 world records. 23 Olympic golds. But he has one competition left to win. An event so monumental no one has ever attempted it before. The world’s most decorated athlete takes on the ocean’s most efficient predator: Phelps V Shark – the race is on!”
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