>> she touched the lives of so many people in so many different ways all over the world. >> this is "piers morgan tonight." good evening from london. day four of the 2012 summer olympics. indeed an historic day for the world and for every single american. michael phelps shows everyone he's the best of all time, swimming his way into the record books. winning not one but two medals it giving him an astonishing 19 olympic medals. quite extraordinary. it comes as a 16-year-old girl from china wins another gold and leaves yet more questions about whether her incredible achievements are more than god given. i'm joined now by christine brennan from "usa today" and dominique dawes who was part of the dream team. the magnificent seven who last won gymnastic gold for america in 1996. let's talk michael phelps. it's the big story today. he's become officially the greatest olympic medal winner in history. what does it mean to any olympic athlete? >> michael phelps has definitely earned every single one of these 19 medals that he's won thus far. it means so much. it's the legacy he's going to leave behind. not just in swimming but in olympics sports and in sports in general. i'm so proud of him. he's from maryland. i've been cheering for him every step of the way. >> christine, it's an extraordinary achievement because the previous record holder, larisa latynina, who's a russian gymnast, last competed in the olympics in 1964. to give you some idea just how long ago that was, that's a year before i was born. it's that ancient. >> it's 21 years before michael phelps was born. i think the only sad note tonight for michael is he did not win his signature event, the 200 butterfly. this is the event, piers, he was in as a 15-year-old in sydney in 2000. for michael phelps to be caught at the finish in his signature, his bread and butter race, i'm sure that even though he's very happy about this record -- >> he won't like it. >> no. >> a lot of experts saying tonight he eased up, which is unlike him. as he did, the south african went through hard and that's how he beat him. very unlike michael phelps to let that happen. >> a mistake. he looked upset afterward. that's part of the reason. people remember four years ago the 100 butterfly where michael caught his competitor right at the very end. this was the complete reverse of that. very disappointing finish for michael. >> do you think he's trained as hard as he did for beijing? do you think the hunger has been there? >> no, it can't be there. dominique knows this for sure. it can't be there. he said he didn't want to train. if it's not in the tank, if you haven't put the money in the bank, how do you withdraw it? and i thk that's what we're seeing with michael as well. >> and this is contentious as well, about this young chinese swimmer. what do you make of all that's going on with her? a lot of people saying tonight until she is proven guilty of doping, why on earth are we debating this? what do you think? >> we're debating it because of the history of women's swimming. going back to the east germans in the 1970s, said they weren't doping. it was state sponsored doping, piers. it was well documented. once the wall came down in germany. going back to the '96 olympics in atlanta. everyone was pointing fingers at an irish woman, michelle smith, who came out of the blue to win. sure enough, they were saying it was sour grapes. they were all correct. so time and again when they pointed fingers in women's swimming, more often than not, it has proved to be true and that's what we're seeing here. >> with me now is cheng li, from the brookings institution, and it is a director with the united nations on u.s./china relations. what do you think is going on here? racial undertones to this? if this was an american swimmer or british swimmer would this debate be on front pages around the world? >> it may not be so much as a racial thing. i think it's still unfair to single out a chinese swimmer. because early guests were mentioning history, but history does not necessarily review things about present. the fact is the chinese government actually has a very tight policy about the doping. they actually test many, many times. the fact is that shiwen was tested recently, just a few hours ago. i think it's unfair to treat a chinese swimmer. also, chinese public acted strongly. they believe this is kind of racial thing. the chinese never doubt about the michael phelps. chinese never doubted other extraordinary performance of the american athletes. in that regard, china may have some point. >> christine brennan, there's no doubt. hearing the torpedo, saying he had the same kind of extraordinary rapid growth and performance. five seconds. when he was 16, 17. exactly the same age. when you're very young as a swimmer, you can have these alarming jumps in your performance levels. physically, she isn't anything as bulky as the chinese swimmers who did cheat. we remember that from athens and other games. are we giving her a bad rap, do you think? >> well, i don't think we are. i think journalistically it's the right thing to do. to ask these questions. >> what if it happened to an american? >> i believe it would, as i mentioned earlier, michelle smith, an irish swimmer, she got all those questions in 1996. when dora tor came back in 2000, i wrote a column saying if she with german we'd ask these questions about her. she didn't like that. there are questions about i think absolutely. there are questions about chinese drug testing. that is the international community asking those very tough questions. it's not the same as some of the drug testing around the rest of the world. and the chinese coming out of the blue, i mean, good for her, i hope she's clean, but the history of the sport says we have to ask these questions. >> cheng li, china in a sense has brought this on itself, hasn't it? because there have been so many swimmers discredited in the last 15 years or so. is it really surprising that people would raise an eyebrow of yet another extraordinary out of the world performance? is it not right to at least ask a question? >> china paid a huge price for what they did in the 1990s. because of that, the chinese people and the chinese swimming community feel they should take a very tough policy to what's doping. actually, they caught one or two cases even before that. i don't think it's a systemic approach in contrast to 20 years ago. having said that, i still think it is so unfair to have the audience have speculation about a young swimmer, a rising star, and she is talented and we do not have much evidence but to launch criticism against her, not only me, but many of the people, americans, including some of the leaders, administrators of the international olympic committee. also raise that issue. so i think that we -- unless we have some evidence, we should stop criticizing her and we should cheer, we should applaud her extraordinary achievements. >> dominique, you're a great athlete. gymnastics has never been hit by the same kind of doping scandals many of the other sports have at the olympics. there's lots of question marks about usain bolt, about almost everybody who does out of the world achievements. it's very sad to me as a sports fan that the first thought people have when you watch an amazing performance is, is she cheating, is he cheating? when there's no evidence that they are yet. >> i would be -- i'm very sad as well. i couldn't imagine being in a sport like swimming or track and field where you're standing on the block or you're about to take off and you're thinking are your competitors possibly doping, possibly cheating. >> do you think part of this is because china are beating america, winning more gold medals, jealousy maybe? >> could it because china has been performing very well. let me also mention china swimming team has not been a surprise victory for the team. because they have been doing consistently well in the past few years. there are some swimmers, really, will be very successful in the years to come. of course we should very vigorously to test the chinese swimmers because of the previous record. because they are doing so well. but before any evidence or any proof, we should stop all these speculations. >> cheng li, thank you very much indeed for joining me. dominique, let's turn to gymnastics. a stunning day after a disappointing day. it's been a disappointing start for the americans till today. michael phelps has revved everybody up. women's gymnastics team scooping gold for the first time since you did it with what was called the magnificent seven. you were the queen of the magnificent seven many people said. an amazing achievement. >> i'm calling these girls the fab five. i've been calling them the fab five for some time now. i know i've ripping off that nickname from a basketball team back in the day. i thought they looked great in prelims. i understand there's an issue about jordyn wieber being knocked out of the all-around, but we still have alley and gabby competing. shannon miller was there working with other reporters. we were just thrilled for these young girls. we know it's been six years. we are so proud to pass the torch. i'm so tired of hearing about the magnificent seven. we made history with a dramatic finish, but i've one of those older athletes that i want to see the younger generation surpass what we've accomplished. >> good for you. >> in my 20s, i have with been so selfish but at 35, not so much. it's a great achievement. >> i interviewed aly raisman. she's a remarkable young woman. incredibly confident. brilliant at what she does. gabby, again, another brilliant young gymnast. are we seeing a real resurgence now do you think in gymnastics for the american team? >> absolutely. i think it's the system that marta karolyi, the wife of bela karolyi, the king of the system. mind and body. get them all together. train as one. 12 different performances. three gymnasts on each of the four rotations, piers. they were flawless. just a tiny bobble here or there. >> i felt sad for john orozko. i interviewed him. he was such a sweet young guy. i really felt for him. i felt he had the weight of america on his shoulders. i suddenly saw the huge pressure this these young kids feel. >> it was a disappointing performance out of the guys. john orozko, great kid, puerto rican guy until the bronx. gem leva, it was disappointing for them in the team finals. however, i do feel as if those two guys have an opportunity to redeem themselves in the all-around competition and i think they'll do just that. >> good to see america firing on all cylinders. finally. i think the china/america battle looking at it from my british perspective, is going to be great. i can't wait to see how it all ends up. thank you both for joining me. i really appreciate it. >> thank you. watching the terror. our exclusive look behind the scenes with britain's security forces as i go aboard the royal navy's largest warship. [ taste buds ] donuts, donuts, donuts! who are these guys? oh, that's just my buds. bacon, donuts. -my taste buds. -[ taste buds ] waffles. how about we try this new kind of fiber one cereal? you think you're going to slip some fiber by us? rookie. okay. ♪ nutty clusters and almonds, ♪ ♪ almonds. ♪ fiber one is gonna make you smile. ♪ [ male announcer ] introducing new fiber one nutty clusters and almonds. with 43% daily value of fiber for you. crunchy nutty clusters and real almond slices for your taste buds. munich, 1972. atlanta, 1996. the unfortunate datelines. a small army making sure nothing like that can happen in london. led by an elite team. led by "hms ocean." during the dural the largest warship in the british royal navy fleet. it sits on the river thames with attack helicopters at the ready. i was taken for an exclusive tour of the vessel. >> every time "ocean" sets sail, we do something unique. this is just another example of that. >> what is the nightmare scenario to deal with for you? >> there isn't really. we've contingency plans for every possible scenario. there's five helicopters ready to go at the command. >> the particular thing i was told the army was, i'm not sure it applies to all of them, but they'll be snipers in the back. their job is to intercept? >> there's a range of capabilities we can put in the back of this aircraft. that is but one of them. >> you don't give too much away? >> absolutely not. there's a lot of surprises we can deliver. >> sergeant kevin hayes keeps them flying. these helicopters could be the fastest rapid response tool you have on this boat, right? >> that's correct. helicopter is highly versatile. it holds the world speed record of just under 200 miles per hour. these aircraft can be scrambled in a matter of moments into the no-fly zone to capture any aircraft. >> these at the moment down here, there are two that are currently ready to go. they can take off how fast? >> in a matter of moments. sliding door. lots of space. and not fitted for -- for the olympics, kell with fit various weapons systems. currently for the olympics, our snipers will be operating from this space. >> if troops need to response by water there are crack marines on board like alex morgan. and conner mayne. this extraordinary looking beast, what is it? >> it's used to transport troops to a beachhead. as royal marines, our main job is to beach -- that's what these things are used for. >> if there was a major incident down at the olympics, you could get here pretty quickly, right? the. >> yeah, yeah, yeah. these things are capable of shooting up and down the river quite quickly. >> you guys are basically armed to the teeth if you need to be? >> absolutely. >> the captain is andrew benton. this "hms ocean" was in libya, in war action last year. now it's here for the olympics primarily at the moment. what's the difference in terms of what you do as the captain? >> "hms ocean" is the royal navy's largest ship. but she is incredibly versatile. on the face of it, the task of libya is completely different to what we're doing here in london. but actually, the detail reality, the day to day nuts and bolts of our business is about launching and recovering aircraft. and accommodating people. >> is this the biggest operation you can remember for a domestic situation? because i can't remember one as big as this in totality. >> as an arm of government, the uk armed forces are responsible 365 days a year to help secure our homeland. but as a discrete operation, the olympic festival, whether that's the olympic games or the paralympic games is certainly the largest security operation i've ever seen. >> would you say from all your experience that we're ready? >> very much so. >> the military maxim. the army travels on its stomach. the "ocean" is no exception. the man running the chow line. chief petty officer peter. let's get down to logistics. >> at the moment, we've got just over 1,000 people on board. normally ships come in just over 400, so we've got an extra 600 people that we're feeding. on a 24-hour period. >> that's an english good breakfast, not american. >> english. >> this is like eggs, bacon, sausage. the whole works. >> yeah, the whole works. >> they don't have to have that. they can have cereals and toast if they prefer to. >> the marines has a message for anyone thinking of stirring up trouble at the games. >> stay on couch and watch it on tv. >> don't mess with you guys. >> absolutely not. >> next, my candid interview with monico's royal couple. from their olympic past to their new life together. prince william and his bride catherine aren't the only royal couple in britain for the olympics. so are prince albert and prulg princess charleen of monaco. they have a lot to say about living in the public eye. i sat down with them for a surprisingly honest interview. we're here in london for the olympics. thank you for joining me. here is a fascinating fact that many of my viewers may not be aware of. you have both competed at the olympic games. >> yes. it was great to -- well, it was a wonderful moment for me and i think for charlene too but it was great that sport brought us together, because -- >> you were in five games. in the monaco bob sled team, the bobsled as they say in america. you were the guy in front in a four-man bobsled. i've watched this. it looked absolutely terrifying to me. is it as terrifying to do it? >> you know, i've often said that anyone who's done bob sleigh, especially as a driver, if they weren't scared once during their career, they weret real bobsledders. you learn to overcome that fear. you learn to work with the track, and your job is to beat that track. and to make sure your sleigh gets down safely. and the crew is down safely in a fast time. >> princess charleen, you are an olympic swimmer. >> was. >> you always are, once you? once you've competed in the olympics, for the rest of your life, you can say, "i was an olympic swimmer." >> once an olympian, always an olympian. >> i think that's what they all say. >> tell me about your swimming career. >> i started swimming when i was 8 years old. i competed for zimbabwe. at the age of 12, i moved to south africa, and started competing when i was 16. i had the dream to go to the olympics when i was 8 years old. my mom was a diver. i drew a lot of inspiration from her. i managed to get to the olympic games, sydney. >> you have two horses in the race for the olympics. there's the monaco contestants, how many? six, i heard? >> we have six athletes. >> six athletes. obviously, a number of south africans competing. you'll be supporting both i presume. south africa is an extraordinary country. i went to johannesburg just before the soccer world cup and i've had the great honor of interviewing nelson mandela. before that, a few years ago. incredible changes in your country. what do you feel about south africa today? >> i'm always optimistic about south africa. i think south africans are great people. it's a beautiful country. a lot of talented athletes and people. so yeah, i -- i'm optimistic about south africa. >> you must have met nelson mandela. remarkable man. >> yes, in fact, i met him, the first time, we were a small group of ioc members going to check on the capetown bid for the olympics. and he received us in his office in pretoria, and it was just an incredible meeting. could sense the incredible personality and the -- the essence of what he was all about. and that he was -- >> i loved his humor, too. a funny man as well. >> absolutely. >> he was a very simple man. very smart in the way he united a country through a simple game of sport. he, you know, south africa was never the same and, you know, he's an enthusiastic sports person. was a sports person himself. and, you know, i just think -- >> it was in monaco that -- for the sports awards that he -- wonderful speech that he made that evening, that he said sport has the power to unite the world. and that's exactly what -- what we are trying to do in the international olympic committee. but -- support organizations all over the world. but he was the first one to really coin that phrase. >> yeah, he was. what about president obama? he's coming near the end of his first term. he's obviously battling for re-election in november. you've met him. what do you think him? >> yes, i met him at the united nations a couple of years ago. and was really struck by his personality and -- very engaging person. i met michelle obama also. i think he's -- considering the circumstances. overall world economic slowdown that he's managed pretty remarkably well. >> what do you think of america as a country today? because they're struggling a little bit i think with their identity. no longer the only super power. what do you think? >> well, i think america -- we still look up to america in many ways. many areas. but of course the world is --