here’s an amusing case of mistaken identity.

BBC’s Steve Parry, who recently went to Tiananmen Square carrying a cardboard cutout of michael phelps, got a bit of a shock when an admiring throng of chinese strollers mistook him for the famous swimmer and began snapping his picture and following him.

despite his strenuous denials that he wasn’t michael phelps (see video), Parry — a British swimmer who won a bronze medal in the 200m butterfly in the 2004 Athens Olympics — had a hard time shaking off his “fans”.

he really doesn’t look like michael, but i guess his height and build, longish face, short hair and prominent ears all add up to the impression that he is…?