Most Olympic Gold Medals Ever

Michael Phelps holds the record for the most Olympic gold medals by any athlete, with 23 golds won across four Games from 2004 to 2016. That total is more than twice the next-best tally, making it one of the most dominant records in all of sport.

Olympic gold is the ultimate individual prize, and the all-time list is a tour through more than a century of sporting greatness. Because some sports offer many events in a single Games while others offer only one, the leaderboard naturally favors swimmers and gymnasts, who can win several medals at once. Here is the full leaderboard of the most Olympic golds ever won by an individual, and the athletes behind the numbers. All figures are through the 2024 Paris Games.

The record holder: Michael Phelps and 23 golds

Phelps competed at four Olympics and turned swimming into a personal medal factory. His peak came at Beijing 2008, where he won a record eight gold medals at a single Games, breaking Mark Spitz’s famous mark of seven. Across his career he claimed 23 golds and 28 total medals, both records by enormous margins.

The scale of his lead is the story. No other athlete has reached even half of 23 golds, which is why Phelps is routinely cited as the most decorated Olympian in history and one of the greatest athletes the Games have ever seen.

The full leaderboard of most Olympic golds

The table below ranks the individual athletes with the most Olympic gold medals. Active athletes are noted.

Rank	Golds	Athlete	Country	Sport
1	23	Michael Phelps	USA	Swimming
2	9	Larisa Latynina	USSR	Gymnastics
2	9	Paavo Nurmi	Finland	Athletics
2	9	Mark Spitz	USA	Swimming
2	9	Carl Lewis	USA	Athletics
2	9*	Katie Ledecky	USA	Swimming
7	8	Usain Bolt	Jamaica	Athletics
7	8	Sawao Kato	Japan	Gymnastics
7	8	Matt Biondi	USA	Swimming
7	8	Ray Ewry	USA	Athletics

*Active athlete; total is through the 2024 Paris Games and may still rise.

Below Phelps, the list clusters tightly. A group of five legends shares second on nine golds, and a deep field of all-time greats, including Usain Bolt, sits just behind on eight. The concentration of swimmers and track-and-field stars reflects how many gold-medal chances those sports offer.

The nine-gold club

Second place belongs to a remarkable quintet. Larisa Latynina dominated gymnastics for the Soviet Union across three Games; Paavo Nurmi, the “Flying Finn,” ruled distance running in the 1920s; Mark Spitz set the standard in the pool before Phelps; and Carl Lewis reigned over sprinting and long jump into the 1990s. The newest member is Katie Ledecky, who reached nine golds at Paris 2024 and, as an active swimmer, could climb higher still.

Usain Bolt and the eight-gold names

Just behind sits a group on eight golds, led by Usain Bolt, whose sprint dominance produced three straight Olympic sweeps of the 100m and 200m. Bolt would have had nine had a relay medal not been stripped over a teammate’s doping violation, a reminder that even the greatest tallies can shift. The presence of gymnasts, swimmers and sprinters in this tier again shows where the Games offer the most chances to win.

Why the record matters

Olympic golds are the purest measure of the world’s best athletes on the biggest stage, which is why the top of this list features such iconic names. Phelps’s 23 stands apart, more than double any rival, a margin that makes it one of the sport’s most secure records. For a broader look at Olympic history and the events that produce these champions, see our guide to the 2028 Olympics venues.

The short version: Michael Phelps holds the record for the most Olympic gold medals with 23, more than double the nine shared by Larisa Latynina, Paavo Nurmi, Mark Spitz, Carl Lewis and the active Katie Ledecky. Through the 2024 Paris Games, no athlete is close to challenging Phelps’s mark.