# 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?

*By YPB Team · Published April 9, 2026 · https://youpick.best/ranking/who-is-the-greatest-olympic-athlete-of-all-time*

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## Current results (no votes yet)

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.

Tags: historical-figures, usa, sports, celebrities, olympics, players, classics