A look back at sports
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Sports pictures of the year
From a nail-biting pass at Superbowl XLIII to a bloody WBO World Welterwight fight, here's a look at the best sports photos of 2009. Slideshow
Phelps wins 200 meters freestyle for ninth gold
BEIJING (Reuters) - Michael Phelps won the men's 200 meters freestyle title at the Beijing Games on Tuesday to enter the pantheon of Olympic greats with a record-equaling career tally of nine gold medals.
The American's third gold, and third world record, in three days lifted him alongside compatriots Carl Lewis and Mark Spitz, Finland's Paavo Nurmi and Soviet gymnast Larysa Latynina at the top of the all-time most-titled list.
Phelps, the world champion in the distance, was a body length clear at halfway and hit the wall in 1:42.96 to shatter his own world record by 0.90 seconds.
South Korea's Park Tae-Hwan took silver and American Peter Vanderkaay the bronze.
The 23-year-old's first Olympic freestyle title, after success in butterfly and medley, also made him the first male swimmer to win five individual titles.
(Additional reporting by Martin Petty, editing by Greg Stutchbury)
(For more stories visit our multimedia website "2008 Summer Olympics" here; and see our blog at blogs.reuters.com/china)
