Talk about making a splash

US Swimmer and Beijing relay gold medalist Ricky Berens tore the back of his swimsuit in a qualifying heat of the 4×100m relay freestyle on Sunday during the World Swimming Championships in Rome.

Shortly before stepping up to the starting block, the University of Texas senior leaned down to stretch and his suit ripped right on his rear. “I kind of freaked out for just a second,” Berens said of the “I felt like [the hole] was almost down to my knees. I felt like I was putting on a pretty good show.”

As soon as he got out of the pool, Berens quickly wrapped up in a towel. In the end, tear or no tear Berens didn’t let the wardrobe malfunction stop him and he and the US team went on to qualify and win. The Huffington Post has the best pictures, capturing every angle of his dive into the pool.

Michael Phelps is in Italy for this week’s FINA World Championships in Rome and is back in top physical shape after months of partying following his Olympic record breaking wins last summer.

Sunday was the first day of competition and Phelps along with teammates Ryan Lochte, Matthew Grevers and Nathan Adrian won gold for the USA in the 4×100 freestyle relay.

Phelps looks as hot as ever. I LOVE his cry for “Peace” (see shirtless photo).