Hours after a picture of Michael Phelps smoking out of a Marijuana bong the Olympic champion swimmer released a statement regarding the incident. Phelps expressed regret saying:

"I engaged in behavior which was regrettable and demonstrated bad judgment. I'm 23 years old and despite the successes I've had in the pool, I acted in a youthful and inappropriate way, not in a manner people have come to expect from me. For this, I am sorry. I promise my fans and the public it will not happen again."

UK tabloid News of the World reported that Phelps spokesman offered a deal if the publicication didn't print the picture. Their story read:

Spokesman Clifford Bloxham offered us an extraordinary deal not to publish our story, saying Phelps would become our columnist for three years, host events and get his sponsors to advertise with us.

In return, he asked that we kill Phelps’ bong picture. Bloxham said: “It’s seeing if something potentially very negative for Michael could turn into something very positive for the News of the World.”

It should be interesting to see what the IOC has to say about this matter. Considering he is probably worth millions in Olympic advertising dollars, I predict a slap on the wrist despite a public admonishment.