Top 10 Greatest Olympic Swimmers of All Time

July 7, 2021 By Sourav

According to research, people who swim regularly are healthier and fitter than those who go to the gym or run every day. Working out vigorously might leave you out of breath and sweating furiously. On the other hand, Swimming will leave one even more refreshed after a tedious session. Competitive swimming in the Olympics is a very big sporting event. Swimming is an amazing sport to keep one healthy and toned. A lot of athletes swim regularly besides their regular sports. It is considered one of the most effective cardio workouts and doesn’t require any gym equipment to shed those pounds. In the following list, we are going to list down the best of the best. Here are Top 10 Greatest Olympic Swimmers of All Time. Hope you enjoy reading the list.

Greatest Olympic Swimmers - All Time Ranking

Swimming regularly not only boosts metabolism but is also an easier alternative to working out every day at the gym. If you need some motivation as well as some push to start swimming yourself, this is the correct place to be. Here are the best swimmers who have won the most amounts of gold in the Olympics. Check them out and comment below.

10. Don Schollander (5 Olympic Gold Medals)

At number 10 in this list of top 10 greatest Olympic swimmers of all time, we have Don Schollander. Donald Arthur Schollander is an American former competition swimmer.

He has won the Olympic championship in swimming 5times so far. He is also a former world record-holder in four events. Arthur won a total of five gold medals as well as one silver medal at the 1964 and 1968 Summer Olympics.

After winning four gold medals, he was the most successful athlete at the 1964 Olympics.

9. Tom Jager (5 Olympic Gold Medals)

At number 9 in this list of top 10 greatest Olympic swimmers of all time, we have Tom Jager. At age 56, right now…he used to be a swimming athlete from the USA.

His nickname from the fans was an obvious one, which is ‘Tom’. He got his degree from the University of California, LA. Initially, his coach was Ron Ballatore.

8. Nathan Adrian (5 Olympic Gold Medals)

At number 8, in this list of top 10 greatest Olympic swimmers of all time, we have Nathan Adrian. He is a budding swimming athlete with a lot of potential in him.

He has already won 5 Olympic golds at this age and is paving way for more. This young and handsome lad was born in the year of 1988, on December 7th.

He is quite tall with a height of 1.98 m which is roughly 2 meters. If he has had so much success now, it even thrills us to think how better he will be, and now, he trains himself for more of the upcoming years.

7. Aaron Peirsol (5 Olympic Gold Medals)

At number 7 in this list of top 10 greatest Olympic swimmers of all time, we have Aaron Peirsol. He is currently 36 years old and was born in California, USA.

He is known for his amazing Backstrokes and he has won 5 Olympic Gold medals to date. Aaron got his education from the University of Texas. He is a former world champion as well as several world records holder.

6. Ian Thorpe (5 Olympic Gold Medals)

At number 6 in this list of top 10 greatest Olympic swimmers of all time, we have Ian Thorpe. Without any doubt, he is among the greatest swimmers of all time.

He is 6 feet and 3 inches height, which is quite normal for a swimmer and a talented one at that. His full name is Aaron wells Peirsol and he is a backstroke specialist.

5. Gary Hall Jr (5 Olympic Gold Medals)

At number 5 in this list of top 10 greatest Olympic swimmers of all time, we have Gary Hall Jr. Hid full name is Gary Wayne Hall Jr and he is from Cincinnati, Ohio.

Right now he is 42 years old and is fit and fine, thanks to his swimming regime. He expertise in Freestyle swimming and has won 5 Olympic golds among other silvers and numerous bronzes.

4. Ryan Lochte (6 Olympic Gold Medals)

At number 4 in this list of top 10 greatest Olympic swimmers of all time, we have Ryan Lochte. This handsome lad is 36 years old and hails from Rochester, New York.

He has been nicknamed ‘’Reezy’’ by his fans. Also, some people tend to call him the "Lochtenator", which is an amazingly cool name by the way.

He has already won 6 Olympic gold medals along with three of each silver and bronze. He is an all-rounder and has expertise in freestyle, butterfly, Backstroke as well as a medley.

3. Matt Biondi (8 Olympic Gold Medals)

At number 3, in this list of top 10 greatest Olympic swimmers of all time, we have Matt Biondi. Right now aged 54, this Olympic swimmer was born on 8^th October 1965.

Matt is an expert in Freestyle swimming as well as butterfly strokes. He completed his education from the University of California, Berkley.

He is one of the tallest athletes in this list with a height of 2.1 meters. Matt was popularly known as ‘matt ‘by his beloved fans. He is also called "The California Condor".

2. Mark Spitz (9 Olympic Gold Medals)

At number 2, in this list of top 10 greatest Olympic swimmers of all time, we have Mark Spitz. The winner of a total of 9 Olympic gold medals and several silver and bronzes.

Mark Spitz is one of the assets of a swimming sport. He was one of the greatest Swimmers of his time and has a record, which hasn’t been broken to date.

Mark was lovingly called Mark the shark by his beloved fans. He Hails from the USA and was an expert in Butterfly stroke and Freestyle. He is 66 years old but his spirit and achievements are to be looked up to.

1. Michael Phelps (23 Olympic Gold Medals)

At number 1, in this list of top 10 greatest Olympic swimmers of all time, we have Michael Phelps. When we think of ‘Swimming’, the mind automatically rushes to this athlete, for he has redefined swimming.

The best part about Phelps is that he does not want to lose. His annoyed face after not winning the gold in the recent summer Olympics held in Rio 2016, went viral. He was seen sporting an annoyed look much as of a little girl after losing her toy. It was both hilarious and cute.

Phelps is the most decorated olympian of all time and there is no doubt about it. It has been a privilege to watch him win so many Olympic golds. Now, not only is he one of the most paid and endorsed swimmers… but he is also one of the richest athletes ever. With the future, his fame, as well as success, shall increase.

Greatest Olympic Swimmers - All-Time Infographics

Final Words

These were the best Athletes in swimming to date. Michael Phelps’s record is impossible to break, but if you think some other swimmers should be in this list of top 10 greatest Olympic swimmers of all time, leave the suggestions in the comment box down below. Who knows, we will make another list out of that! We just might.