Michael Phelps

Michael Phelps tread carefully around Matt Lauer asking point-blank asking if he smoked marijuana at a South Carolina party where he was photographed holding a bong.

"It was a bad mistake. I mean, we all know what, you know, what you and I are talking about. It's a stupid mistake. You know, bad judgment. And it's something that, you know, I have to, and I want to teach other people not to make that mistake," Phelps said during the Today show Friday.

Lauer was quick to roll tape of a similar apology Phelps made on Today in 2004 after the DUI incident.

"I'll be the first one to admit I've made a lot of mistakes in my life in the pool and out of the pool," Phelps said. "But I have never made the same mistake again. I never made the same mistake twice."

They are, after all, two totally different things.

Watch the video after the jump to see Phelps' first interview since Ganja Gate:

Michael Phelps lost a big endorsement deal and suffered a three-month suspension from competition because of a photo of him smoking a bong — but the 14-time Olympic gold medalist won't face any drug charges.

A South Carolina sheriff said Monday there wasn't enough physical evidence to bring charges against Phelps, according to The Associated Press. Richland County Sheriff Leon Lott said holding a bong is not a crime, and Phelps never admitted using it.

"He never said, 'I smoked marijuana.' He never confessed that," Lott said.

Phelps said he is now focused on getting back in the water... read more 13 Comments

The price of marijuana keeps going up for Michael Phelps: USA Swimming has suspended him for three months, and Kellogg is dropping him as a sponsor over his pipe-smoking photo.

"This is not a situation where any anti-doping rule was violated, but we decided to send a strong message to Michael because he disappointed so many people, particularly the ...
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Michael Phelps is under criminal investigation because of the photo of him smoking a marijuana pipe.

South Carolina's Richland County Sheriff's Dept. is trying to determine whether the swimmer broke the law by ...
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Michael Phelps apologized for "regrettable" behavior and "bad judgment" after a photo of him smoking a marijuana pipe surfaced in British tabloid News of the World.

"I engaged in behavior which was regrettable and demonstrated bad judgment," Phelps said in a statement. "I'm 23 years old and despite the successes I've had in the pool, I acted ...
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