Abu Dhabi: Mention the name of swimming superstar Michael Phelps to his heir apparent as king of the pool, Chad Le Clos, and the South African is unashamedly gushing in his affection for his idol.

As a youngster, Le Clos worshipped the American legend in a similar way to a teenage girl fawning over her favourite pop star. He devoured every moment of the greatest Olympian in history’s strokes of genius on video and plastered his bedroom walls with posters of Phelps — which endure to this day at his Durban home.

“My first memories of Michael Phelps were at the Athens Olympics [in 2004] when I was 12 years old,” Le Clos told Gulf News in a telephone interview to promote his appearance at last month’s Abu Dhabi Swimming Festival.

“I remember my dad watching the TV and saying: ‘Hey, come and watch this’. He won six golds there.

“I just remember him doing his underwater kicks. I wanted to be like him, with his focus and dedication. He’s a very tough competitor and I definitely hero worshipped him and still do.”

Eight years later, Le Clos experienced the surreal and unforgettable experience of beating the object of his veneration to the 200-metre butterfly crown at the London 2012 Olympics.

He revealed later that, on commiserating with Phelps, he had spoken of his immense respect for him. It was an epiphany that would move Phelps and his coach Bob Bowman to tears.

Le Clos recalled: “Meeting him at the Olympic Games, that was unbelievable. Obviously I won, but racing against Michael was amazing as I was able to have the race of my life.”

The master Phelps would go on to wreak revenge on his doe-eyed apprentice in the 100-metre butterfly, but since then Le Clos has supplanted him as the poster boy of the pool.

Phelps retired from the sport after the 2012 Olympics, but made a low-key comeback last year, although Le Clos easily outshone him and was named the 2014 Fina Male Swimmer of the Year.

Phelps, who has been dogged by controversy in his personal life, such as drink-driving convictions and allegations of drug use, is also considered a veteran of the sport. Few experts expect him to emulate his halcyon days.

However, Le Clos firmly believes Phelps will compete at the 2016 Rio Olympics despite his age and recent travails.

“What’s my message to Michael? ‘See you in Rio’,” Le Clos said. “Will he compete in Rio? One-hundred per cent, I hope so.

“I think it would be fantastic to have him back and fantastic for me. I like to race the best and I think Michael Phelps is always going to be up top.

“He’s not going to come back to be second or third. He’s going to come back to win. He has such a great legacy, there’s no point for him [in competing] otherwise.”

Yet while Phelps commands his unstinting reverence, Le Clos’ excellence and his past mastery of the maestro imbue him with supreme confidence that he can repeat his 2012 heroics.

He said: “Look, it doesn’t matter if it’s Michael Phelps or whoever the stars coming up are, I want to beat them. If he does decide to come back, I am confident I can beat him again.

“He’s the greatest swimmer of all time and I’ll have to be on my best form. Come Rio next year, I’m going to be in the best form of my life. So, yeah, I am ready to take him on again.”

He added: “Having Michael Phelps back adds that extra motivation for me to train harder because I know for me to race him again will create a great rivalry for the sport, almost like a Muhammad Ali-Joe Frazier [situation]. Hopefully that can create a bit of a spark and hopefully I can hear my national anthem again.”

It is no surprise to learn that the pair are friends despite being fierce rivals, given their shared, animalistic lust for success and winning mentality.

What has Le Clos learned from Phelps?

“He’s always been a very strong finisher in all his races,” he said. “Whenever Michael enters the final turn in the lead or just behind, you always know he’s going to win. That’s what I’ve tried to do also.

“I almost felt like I was Michael that day [in London].”

What’s the greatest lesson Le Clos believes he can offer youngsters, such as those he taught at the Abu Dhabi Swimming Festival?

“Never give up in any event,” he said. “If you’re losing by 10 seconds in the pool or in life, if you’re behind in your studies, never drop your head and quit.

“I’ve never done that and never will. I’m never afraid to race anybody, whoever they are.”

Yet perennial success can breed complacency and Le Clos says occasional failures have been hugely educational.

“Over the last few years, I’ve had a lot of success but also had disappointments,” he said. “I’m obviously upset at losing, but I always reflect on how I could have done better. If you win all the time, you can’t find a weakness.

“Sometimes it’s good to lose a few races, as it brings you back to ground and you think how you could have turned better or whatever.

“If you’d won the race, you wouldn’t be analysing those things.”

Phelps is a salient example to Le Clos that even the greatest sportsmen can fall victim to temptations such as drink or drugs.

However, the level-headed South African is adamant that he will not be lured into debauched ways.

He said: “I come from a very amazing family, a very strong family. If I have any problems, I can always bounce them off my parents, my siblings and my extended family.

“Could I do what Phelps has done? I would say no to that. There have been times when it’s been hard to deal with certain things in South Africa. I thank my family for keeping me grounded and down to earth in many ways.”

He went on: “In my final year in school, my mum had breast cancer for a year. It was really hard for us as a family to understand and accept that. She pulled through in the end.”

He added: “The difference between me and whoever, Michael Phelps for example, is that if I went wrong, my dad would slap me across the face and say: ‘That was wrong’. With some stars, no-one will tell them that they are wrong because of who they are.

“You’re either wrong or you’re wrong. It doesn’t mean because that if you’re George Clooney, you’re okay. That’s the way I’ve been brought up.”

With such laudable values and humility, allied to his shimmering talent, Le Clos is the perfect ambassador for his sport.

Could he be an even greater swimming figurehead than Phelps?

He said: “I don’t want to talk bad about Michael or anything, as I think he’s fantastic for the sport. But I do believe that I can offer a different dynamic for the sport the way I am and where I am from and what it’s taken me to get to the top.

“But obviously I need to win a lot more races to promote the sport.”

For now, however, Le Clos is more focused on the year ahead – including the world championships in August.

He is determined to break his 100-metre butterfly world record and believes that, while he can get close to doing this in 2015, it is a more realistic proposition next year.

Then there is the tantalising prospect of another duel in the pool with Phelps at the greatest sporting show on earth.

Given Le Clos’ brilliance, steely self-belief and unswerving dedication and focus, the chances are that the South African would again triumph over his inspiration.