Who is the greatest Olympic athlete of all time?

Across every era and discipline — from track legends of the 1920s to modern gymnastics queens — the Olympics has produced once-in-a-generation competitors. Who stands above them all?

1

Michael Phelps

American swimmer who won 23 Olympic gold medals across four Games, the most decorated Olympian in history.

2

Usain Bolt

Jamaican sprinter who won 8 Olympic gold medals and set world records in the 100m and 200m at three consecutive Games.

3

Jesse Owens

American sprinter who won 4 gold medals at the 1936 Berlin Olympics under Nazi rule, becoming a symbol of defiance and excellence.

4

Simone Biles

American gymnast with 7 Olympic medals and 30 World Championship medals, widely considered the greatest gymnast ever.

5

Carl Lewis

American sprinter and long jumper who won 9 Olympic gold medals across four consecutive Games from 1984 to 1996.

6

Nadia Comaneci

Romanian gymnast who scored the first perfect 10 in Olympic history at the 1976 Montreal Games, winning 3 gold medals.

7

Larisa Latynina

Soviet gymnast who won 18 Olympic medals including 9 golds from 1956 to 1964 — the most medals by any gymnast ever.

8

Mark Spitz

American swimmer who won 7 gold medals at the 1972 Munich Olympics — a record at the time that stood for 36 years.

9

Paavo Nurmi

Finnish long-distance runner known as the Flying Finn who won 9 gold medals across the 1920, 1924, and 1928 Olympics.

10

Fanny Blankers-Koen

Dutch sprinter who won 4 gold medals at the 1948 London Olympics, dubbed the Flying Housewife and named female athlete of the 20th century.

11

Serena Williams

American tennis legend who won Olympic gold in singles (2012) and four times in doubles, dominating the sport for two decades.

12

Eliud Kipchoge

Kenyan marathon runner who won back-to-back Olympic gold medals in 2016 and 2021 and broke the sub-2-hour marathon barrier.

13

Muhammad Ali

American boxer who won Olympic gold at Rome 1960 as Cassius Clay before becoming the most iconic fighter in history.