Passing the torch! McKayla Maroney gives up her Olympic meme crown to Michael Phelps after his pre-race glare at rival Chad le Clos eclipses her 'not impressed' face once and for all
- Former Olympic gymnast McKayla Maroney, 20, has officially handed the meme crown she earned four years ago to Michael Phelps, 31
- McKayla, who has retired from gymnastics, went down in internet history after her 'not impressed' face became the subject of numerous memes
- The swimmer's face has become an internet phenomenon after he was filmed looking serious ahead of the 200 meter butterfly semifinal
- He put on a game face as Chad le Clos, who beat the American to gold at the London 2012 Olympics, stood in front of him
Former Olympic gymnast McKayla Maroney went down in internet history for her 'not impressed' face during the London Olympics.
Four years on, the gold medalist-turned-actress-and-singer finally shook off the meme crown as she officially passed it to former teammate swimmer Michael Phelps.
The 20-year-old looked overjoyed as she told TMZ Sports that the most decorated Olympian can take over the honor from her - saying he would 'win a gold medal' for memes.
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Hand-over: McKayla Maroney, pictured left today and right doing her 'not impressed' face on the podium during London 2012, was overjoyed to hand Michael Phelps her meme crown
Jokes: McKayla, now 20, was mocked incessantly online after her podium expression became an internet phenomenon
Meme: The swimmer's face has become an internet phenomenon after he was filmed looking serious ahead of the 200 meter butterfly semifinal as rival Chad le Clos stood nearby
Mockery: He put on a game face as Chad, who beat the American to gold at the London 2012 Olympics, stood in front of him
Twitter users mocked the swimmer using the hashtag #phelpsface where they made fun of his serious expression ahead of the 200-meter butterfly semi final as South African rival Chad le Clos stood nearby.
Memes picture Michael, 31, 'possessed by Satan' and as Star Wars character Darth Maul.
McKayla said they were 'amazing' and 'hilarious' and even admitted that it helped her see the funny side of her own mockery four years ago.
She said: 'I'm just looking at them right now, they're amazing. I now see why people thought it was so funny. They're hilarious, they're amazing.
Fall: McKayla, pictured during the London Games, has retired from gymnastics
Disapproving: She went down in internet history after her 'not impressed' face became the subject of numerous memes, pictured
Unfortunate: It came after she fell during her second vault of the final but still managed to win silver
'Somebody Tweeted me 'McKayla, looks like somebody took your spot' and I was like "what?" And I looked at his pictures and I was like "yes. Go Michael. Take it away, please."'
The 'McKayla is not impressed' face came after she fell during her second vault of the final but still managed to win silver.
On the podium, she was caught making a disappointed looking expression that resulted in her face becoming an internet phenomenon.
After the last Olympics, when he was pipped at the post in the final moments of the race by Chad, Michael is hoping to beat his rival in tonight's final.
Comparisons: Twitter users began using the hashtag #phelpsface to mock the swimmer's serious demeanor
'Phelps face': Mason Waugh transformed Michael into a young Darth Vader and joked 'I have studied you and found nothing but weakness'
Deadly: Phelps' furious glare appears to set the South African's hair on fire
Petulant: A social media user compared Michael to a child who didn't get his Pepsi
Ahead of the semi-final, Chad was caught on camera dancing and shadowboxing directly in front of Michael as they prepared for their races.
This helped spawn Michael's incredible 'game face'.
Chad said: 'Of course there's a huge rivalry between Michael and myself. I race to win and I want to beat Michael.'
World and Olympic record holder Michael led throughout most of Monday's semi-final before being pipped in the last 25 meters by Tamas Kenderesi of Hungary, who finished 0.16 ahead of the American.
Overdressed: One sports fan poked fun at the fact Phelps was sitting inside the arena with the hood up on his jacket
Jest: Dana Schwartz jokingly put Michael's angry game face down to the fact he was unable to get coconut milk in his Starbucks coffee
Spoof: In a mock up of a news flash, this Twitter user joked Michael was 'possessed by Satan'
Rivals: Michael, pictured left, and Chad, pictured right, are both eager to compete against each other again after London 2012
Chad finished fourth, more than a second behind the American - despite having raced in the 200 meter freestyle final a short time before and won silver.
Michael, the most decorated Olympian of all time, retired after 2012 but returned to the sport two years later.
He got off to a good start in Rio, winning his 19th gold on Sunday night in the 4x100 meter freestyle.
He said he was fighting aches and a tight turnaround between the late-night race and the butterfly qualifying heats on Monday.
To deal with the pain he turned again to cupping, a Chinese healing technique, that has left his upper body full of purple bruises. He also said he thought he could do well on Monday after a quick nap.
Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/femail/article-3732056/Passing-torch-McKayla-Maroney-gives-Olympic-meme-crown-Michael-Phelps-pre-race-glare-rival-Chad-Le-Clos-eclipses-not-impressed-face-all.html#ixzz4GsbxcS73
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