Swimming legend Michael Phelps races against a great white shark

Michael Phelps has raced against the world’s fastest swimmers and come out on top – but how would he fare against the ocean’s greatest predator?

The Olympic swimming legend ticked off his “bucket list” moment by going head to head with a great white shark in a long-hyped event to kick off the Discovery Channel’s Shark Week.

Dubbed the ‘Great Gold vs Great White’, the 100m race took place in shark-infested open water off the coast of South Africa.

But while fans may have been hoping to witness the pair actually race head to head, the TV producers instead took the safe option and digitally superimposed a shark to race alongside him.

Phelps had the help of a 1mm-thick wetsuit and a “monofin” to take on his opponent moving at speeds of up to 40km per hour.

“It was challenging. They are very fast … very big. They can move any direction and at any given time,” he said, with his own top speed reaching about 10km per hour.

Despite adapting his swim to that of his competitor, it wasn’t quite enough to score a victory.

Taking in turns to race the length of the course, the shark swam it in 36.1 seconds while Phelps scored 38.1 seconds.

Fans were suitably jilted over the act, expressing their frustrations on Twitter as the race went to air. 

The Olympic gold medallist has since called for a rematch – “next time, in warmer waters”.