Rvine, United States: Olympic great Michael Phelps suffered the first significant setback of his return to competition with a seventh-placed finish in the 100m freestyle at the US Swimming Championships on Wednesday. In a finals field loaded with Olympic medalists, the 18-time Games champion Phelps was nowhere, hitting the halfway wall in eighth and gaining little ground coming home in a race won by reigning 100m free Olympic champion Nathan Adrian.


Michael Phelps 

Phelps ended a near two-year retirement in April, and the US championships are just his fourth meet since then and his first chance to qualify to represent the United States at an international meet -- the Pan Pacific Championships August 21-25 in Gold Coast, Australia. Adrian won in 48.31sec -- well off his best this year of 48.08. Ryan Lochte, whose own collection of 11 Olympic medals includes five golds, stormed to second from lane eight in 48.96.