The 20 most decorated Olympic athletes of all time

Frank OlitoJul 12, 2021, 20:05 IST

Ryan Lochte and Michael Phelps are among the most decorated Olympians.Clive Rose / Gety

As the summer Olympics are set to begin in Tokyo, here are the Olympians with the most medals.
Michael Phelps is the most decorated Olympian in history with 28 medals.
Ryan Lochte, Jenny Thompson, and Larisa Latynina are among the other most successful Olympians.

Michael Phelps is the most decorated Olympian in history with 28 medals.

Michael Phelps. Lee Jin-man/AP

Larisa Latynina held the title of the most decorated Olympian for over 40 years before Phelps took her place.

Larisa Latynina. AP Photo

Nikolay Andrianov is the most decorated male gymnast and the third-most successful Olympian.

Nikolay Andrianov. Tony Duffy / Getty

Norway's Marit Bjørgen is the most decorated winter Olympian with 15 medals.

Marit Bjørgen. Matthias Hangst / Getty

Boris Shakhlinwon 13 Olympic medals as an artistic gymnast for the Soviet Union.

Boris Shakhlin. ullstein bild Dtl. / Getty

Norway's Ole Einar Bjørndalen participated in six Olympic games and earned 13 medals.

Ole Einar Bjørndalen. TF-Images / Getty

Edoardo Mangiarotti also won 13 Olympic medals over the course of his fencing career.

Edoardo Mangiarotti. Universal / Getty

Takashi Ono of Japan also won 13 Olympic medals.

Takashi Ono. ullstein bild Dtl. / Getty

Although Ryan Lochte left the 2016 Rio Olympics in disgrace, he is still one of the most decorated Olympians with 12 medals.

Ryan Lochte. Ashley Landis/AP Images

Jenny Thompson is one of the most decorated female Olympic swimmers.

Jenny Thompson. Harry How / Getty

Finland's Paavo Nurmi earned the first of 12 medals all the way back in 1920.

Paavo Nurmi. Bettmann / Getty

Birgit Fischer, a kayaker from Germany, was once the youngest Olympian winner in her sport before earning 12 medals.

Birgit Fischer. Christof Koepsel / Getty

Cross-country skier Bjørn Dæhlie is considered one of the best winter Olympic athletes in history with 12 medals.

Bjørn Dæhlie. Alexander Hassenstein / Getty

Japan's Sawao Katō was once the most accomplished male gymnast.

Sawao Katō. AP

Dara Torres also earned 12 Olympic medals over the course of her swimming career.

Dara Torres. Doug Pensinger/Getty

Natalie Coughlin is another American swimmer who earned 12 Olympic medals.

Natalie Coughlin. Lucy Nicholson/Reuters

Alexei Nemov is another Olympian with 12 medals.

Alexei Nemov. ADRIAN DENNIS / Getty

In a huge upset, American swimmer Mark Spitz won seven gold medals at one Olympic games.

Mark Spitz. ABC Photo Archives / Getty

Matthew Biondi is another American swimmer with 11 Olympic medals around his neck.

Matthew Biondi. Focus On Sport / Getty

Věra Čáslavská is a gymnast from Czechoslovakia with 11 Olympic medals.

Věra čáslavská. Don Morley / Getty

2 of soccer's brightest stars, Lionel Messi and Neymar, face off in the Copa América final. Take a look back at their previous meetings as rivals.

Cookies on the Business Insider India website