Michael Phelps lost to Ryan Lochte in the 200-meter individual medley during the U.S. national championships Sunday night.

Lochte beat Phelps in the race which left the 18-time Olympic gold medalist without a win in four races following his comeback after he retired.

Phelps was in the sixth lane while Lochte occupied the second lane, and while they couldn't see each other, the race came down to the two of them.

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Lochte emerged as the victor with 1 minute and 56.50 seconds. He just had a major knee surgery which all in all restricted his time in the water.

"This year has been up and down, but I'm glad I got a win knowing that I really haven't done the work I wanted to," Lochte said.

The world champion added that during his previous competitions, he always relied on his training, but for the U.S. championships, his confidence was low due to the lack of practice.

Phelps told the KSL that he was happy that he finished in 1 minute and 56.66 seconds.

"That's a good spot to be," Phelps said. The three time Olympic champion said he was pleased for having finished with the time that he got relative to the other below average performances he had throughout the U.S. nationals.

Lochte's time was recorded as the second-quickest in the world for 2014, while Phelps' was the third.

The entire meet lasted for five days. Lochte finished third in the 200m backstroke, he got second place in the 100m freestyle and he was the victor for the 200m individual medley.

Phelps, on the other hand, was winless in the entire meet. He came in second in the 100 butterfly, sixth in the 100m backstroke and finished seventh in the 100m freestyle.

Although Phelps didn't finish first in this races, he still qualified for the Pan Pacific Championships in August where swimmers can compete in the event of their choice.

TagsRyan Lochte, michael phelps, swimming