Greatest Olympian From Every Country

Who are the Olympic GOATs?

Greatest Olympian From Every Country

There is one worldwide, connecting thread to athletic greatness — winning an Olympic gold medal. It's a unifying athletic feat that makes you a hero no matter where you're from.

These are the greatest Olympians from the 30 countries with the most medals in the Summer Olympics and Winter Olympics combined.

30. Brazil: Robert Scheidt, Sailing

Born: April 15, 1973 (Sau Paolo, Brazil)

Olympics: Atlanta 1996, Sydney 2000, Athens 2004, Beijing 2008, London 2012

Medals: 5, Gold 2, Silver 2, Bronze 1

Total country medals: 129

Bottom line: Robert Scheidt's father bought him his own boat when he was just 9 years old so he could practice sailing at a local dam. It would prove to be the springboard to Olympic greatness.

Scheidt competed for Brazil in five consecutive Olympics and became not only one of the greatest Brazilian Olympians of all time, but one of the greatest Olympic sailors of all time.

Notably, Scheidt is the only Olympian to win sailing medals in both dinghy and keelboat classes.

*All medal counts are the totals heading into the 2024 Olympics in Paris, France.

29. Unified Team: Raisa Smetanina, Cross Country Skiing

Born: Feb. 29, 1952 (Mokhcha, Russian SFSR, Soviet Union)

Olympics: Innsbruck 1976, Lake Placid 1980, Sarajevo 1984, Calgary 1988, Albertville 1992

Medals: 10, Gold 4, Silver 5, Bronze 1

Total medals: 135

Bottom line: Raisa Smetanina made history competing in five consecutive Olympics for the Soviet Union and for the Unified Team by becoming the first woman to win 10 Olympic medals in the Winter Olympics.

Smetanina grabbed the spotlight whenever she was on the biggest stage. At her first Winter Olympics, in 1976, she won two gold medals and one silver medal, making her the most successful athlete at those games.

At her final Winter Olympics in 1992, she won another gold medal — at 39 years old, making her the oldest woman to win gold at the Winter Olympics.

28. Belgium: Hubert Van Innis, Archery

Born: Feb. 24, 1866 (Elewijt, Belgium)

Died: Nov. 25, 1961 (age 95, Zemst, Belgium)

Olympics: Paris 1900, Antwerp 1920

Medals: 9, Gold 6, Silver 3

Total country medals: 137

Bottom line: There aren't many more movie-worthy stories than Belgian archer Hubert Van Innis, who competed in two Olympics, 20 years apart in 1900 and 1920, and won nine total medals.

Van Innis reportedly delivered milk to the villagers around Brussels with his dog and a cart, practicing his archery along the way. He didn't compete in the Olympics until he was 34 years old in 1900, and then again at 54 years old in 1920, when he won another two gold medals.

Incredibly, he won his final world championship in 1933 when he was 67 years old.

27. Spain: David Cal, Canoeing

Born: Oct. 10, 1982 (Galicia, Spain)

Olympics: Athens 2004, Beijing 2008, London 2012

Medals: 5, Gold 1, Silver 4

Total country medals: 154

Bottom line: Spanish canoe champion David Cal was a reserve on Spain's Olympic team at the 2000 games in Sydney, when he was just 17 years old. He then competed in the next three Olympics for his country.

Cal won his first and only gold medal at the 2004 Olympics in Athens. His final silver medal in 2012 made him the Spanish athlete with more Olympic medals than anyone else.

26. Czechia: Vera Caslavska, Gymnastics

Born: May 3, 1942 (Prague, Czechoslovakia)

Died: Aug. 30, 2016 (age 74, Prague, Czech Republic)

Olympics: Rome 1960, Tokyo 1964, Mexico City 1968

Medals: 11, Gold 7, Silver 4

Total country medals: 168

Bottom line: Vera Caslavska is one of just two gymnasts to win Olympic gold in the all-around in consecutive games, and she tallied an amazing 11 medals over three Olympics. But Caslavska's real story is that of a political dissident and hero to the people of her native Czechoslovakia.

Her protests during the Soviet Union's anthem during the 1968 Olympics in response to the Soviet invasion of her country led to her forced retirement from the sport. History was much kinder to Caslavska, though, who became the head of the Czech Olympic Committee and was honored for her strength and courage until her death in 2016.

25. Denmark: Eskild Ebbesen, Rowing

Born: May 27, 1972 (Silkeborg, Midtjylland)

Olympics: Atlanta 1996, Sydney 2000, Athens 2004, Beijing 2008, London 2012

Medals: 5, Gold 3, Bronze 2

Total country medals: 195

Bottom line: We picked Eskild Ebbesen as the member of Denmark's "Gold Four" — perhaps the greatest four-man rowing team of all time — to spotlight.

Ebbesen was the one constant member of the "Gold Four" as they won three Olympic gold medals and five Olympic medals total, along with eight gold medals at the World Championships.

"Our strategy, for every race, was always to be first," said Ebbesen, who was the Danish flag bearer at the 2004 Olympics. "To be No. 1 from the beginning of the race."

24. Bulgaria: Maria Grozdeva, Shooting

Born: June 23, 1972 (Sofia, Bulgaria)

Olympics: Barcelona 1992, Atlanta 1996, Sydney 2000, Athens 2004

Medals: 5, Gold 2, Bronze 3

Total country medals: 224

Bottom line: In Olympic history, Maria Grozdeva is the only person to ever defend her gold medal in the 25-meter pistol competition, winning in both 2000 and 2004. She almost medaled in 2008 by finishing fifth place.

Grozdeva, who still holds the world record in the 25-meter pistol, won three bronze medals in the 10-meter air pistol as well. Grozdeva's fame in Bulgaria is enough that she was included on the country's version of the television show "Big Brother" in 2009.

23. Cuba: Ramon Fonst, Fencing

Born: July 31, 1883 (Havana, Cuba)

Died: Sept. 9, 1958 (age 75, Havana, Cuba)

Olympics: Paris 1900, St. Louis 1904, Paris 1924

Medals: 4, Gold 3, Silver 1

Total country medals: 226

Bottom line: One of the greatest competition fencers of all time, Ramon Fonst lived his entire life in Havana, Cuba, where he was an Olympic legend.

Fonst made history at the 1900 Olympics when, at just 16 years old, he won an Olympic gold medal and became not just the first Cuban but the first Latin American to win an Olympic medal in any sport.

Fonst repeated as an Olympic champion in 1904, winning three gold medals. But Cuba refused to participate in the Olympics again until 1924, where Fonst advanced to the semifinals and lost at 41 years old.

22. West Germany: Reiner Klimke, Equestrian

Born: Jan. 14, 1936 (Munster, Germany)

Died: Aug. 17, 1999 (age 63, Munster, Germany)

Olympics: Rome 1960, Tokyo 1964, Mexico City 1968, Montreal 1976, Los Angeles 1984, Seoul 1988

Medals: 8, Gold 6, Bronze 2

Total country medals: 233

Bottom line: Reiner Klimke became West Germany's greatest Olympian by competing in the games six times. It would have been seven Olympics if not for his country's boycott of the 1980 Olympics in Moscow.

Klimke's eight Olympic medals were a record when he finished the 1988 Olympics in Seoul. He was planning a return to the 2000 Olympics before he died in 1999 at 63 years old.

Klimke's daughter, Ingrid, won an Olympic gold medal in equestrian at the 2008 Olympics.

21. Romania: Nadia Comaneci, Gymnastics

Born: Nov. 12, 1961 (Onesti, Romania)

Olympics: Montreal 1976, Moscow 1980

Medals: 9, Gold 5, Silver 3, Bronze 1

Total country medals: 305

Bottom line: Nadia Comaneci is the greatest Olympic gymnast and one of the greatest Olympians of all time.

At just 14 years old, she wowed the world with her performance at the 1976 Olympics in Montreal, scoring the first perfect 10 in Olympic history on the way to gold medals in the all-around, uneven bars and balance beam to go with a bronze in floor exercise and silver in team all-around.

Comaneci followed that up with two gold medals and two silver medals at the 1980 Olympics. How would she have done in 1984? We'll never know because the Romanian government, wanting to keep its thumb on Comaneci, did not allow her to compete.

20. Poland: Irena Szewinska, Track and Field

Born: May 24, 1946 (Leningrad, Russian SSR, Soviet Union)

Died: June 29, 2018 (age 72, Warsaw, Poland)

Olympics: Tokyo 1964, Mexico City 1968, Munich 1972, Montreal 1976, Moscow 1980

Medals: 7, Gold 3, Silver 2, Bronze 2

Total country medals: 306

Bottom line: There has only been one athlete, male or female, to hold the world records in the 100-meter, 200-meter and 400-meter dash — Poland's Irena Szewinska.

Szewinska had her greatest Olympic moment at the 1976 games in Montreal, when she won her final gold medal by setting the world record in the 400 with a time of 49.28 seconds.

She became a member of the powerful International Olympic Committee in 1998. Szewinska died in 2018, at 72 years old. Her son, Andrezj, was a member of Poland's national volleyball team.

19. Austria: Felix Gottwald, Nordic Combined

Born: Jan. 13, 1976 (Sell am See, Austria)

Olympics: Lillehammer 1994, Nagano 1998, Salt Lake City 2002, Turin 2006, Vancouver 2010

Medals: 7, Gold 3, Silver 1, Medal 3

Total country medals: 319

Bottom line: Felix Gottwald competed in five Winter Olympics for Austria, beginning when he was 18 years old at the 1994 games in Lillehammer. He won his next medal in his third Olympics in 2002 and won his first gold medal at the 2006 games in Turin.

Gottwald actually won two gold medals in 2006, including his only individual gold medal in the 7.5-kilometer sprint. He repeated as Olympic champion in 2010 in the 4x5-kilometer team event.

18. South Korea: Ahn Hyun-Soo/Viktor Ahn, Speed Skating

Born: Nov. 23, 1985 (Seoul, South Korea)

Olympics: Salt Lake City 2002, Turin 2006, Sochi 2014

Medals: 8, Gold 6, Bronze 2

Total country medals: 337

Bottom line: One of the more controversial athletes to make this list, Ahn Hyun-Soo, who later was known as Viktor Ahn, competed first for South Korea, then for Russia in the Olympics.

What's amazing about his medal total is he missed out on two separate games. He failed to qualify for the 2010 Winter Olympics, defected to Russia over "training" programs, dominated at the 2014 Olympics and then was banned from the 2018 Olympics, which would have required him to return to his native South Korea.

17. Switzerland: Georges Miez, Gymnastics

Born: Oct. 2, 1904 (Toss, Switzerland)

Died: April 17, 1999 (Savosa, Switzerland)

Olympics: Paris 1924, Amsterdam 1928, Los Angeles 1932, Berlin 1936

Medals: 8, Gold 4, Silver 3, Bronze 1

Total country medals: 345

Bottom line: Swiss gymnast Georges Miez made history at the 1928 Olympics in Amsterdam, when he won four medals — more than any other athlete — and again in 1932 in Los Angeles, when he was the only medalist from Switzerland.

His trip to the 1932 Olympics was remarkable not only because Miez funded it himself (because his country would not send a team in an economic depression), but also because part of the purpose of the trip was to retrieve the body of his brother, who had died in the United States.

16. Netherlands: Ireen Wust, Speed Skating

Born: April 1, 1986 (Goirle, Netherlands)

Olympics: Turin 2006, Vancouver 2010, Sochi 2014, Pyeongchang 2018

Medals: 11, Gold 5, Silver 5, Bronze 1

Total country medals: 415

Bottom line: Speed skater Ireen Wust made history in 2006 when she became the youngest Dutch Olympic gold medalist at 19 years old.

Wust hardly stopped there. She won gold medals again in 2010, 2014 and 2018. What's most impressive about Wust's medal haul is that, contrary to a lot of athletes, she won the bulk of her gold medals in individual events.

In fact, four of her five golds have come in individual events.

15. Finland: Paavo Nurmi, Cross Country and Distance Running

Born: June 13, 1897 (Turku, Grand Duchy of Finland, Russian Empire)

Died: Oct. 2, 1973 (age 76, Helsinki, Finland)

Olympics: Antwerp 1920, Paris 1924, Amsterdam 1928

Medals: 12, Gold 9, Silver 3

Total country medals: 470

Bottom line: One of the greatest Olympians of all time, regardless of country, is Paavo Nurmi. He dominated in distance running events and had two of the coolest nicknames in Olympic history: "The Flying Finn" and "The Phantom Finn."

Nurmi went to work full-time to provide for his family at 12 years old and, in his prime, won 121 consecutive races from the 80 meters and above.

For his entire career, Nurmi never lost a cross-country race.

14. Japan: Takashi Ono, Gymnastics

Born: July 28, 1931 (Akita, Japan)

Olympics: Helsinki 1952, Melbourne 1956, Rome 1960, Tokyo 1964

Medals: 13, Gold 5, Silver 4, Bronze 4

Total country medals: 497

Bottom line: One of the greatest Olympic gymnasts of all time, Japan's Takashi Ono competed in four separate Olympics and won a medal in each games.

Ono was the flag bearer for Japan in 1960 and took the Olympic oath in 1964. He was also married to a fellow Olympic gymnast, Kiyoko Ono.

Takashi Ono was inducted into the International Gymnastics Hall of Fame in 1998.

13. Hungary: Aladar Gerevich, Fencing

Born: March 16, 1910 (Jaszbereny, Austria-Hungary)

Died: May 14, 1991 (age 81, Budapest, Hungary)

Olympics: Los Angeles 1932, Berlin 1936, London 1948, Helsinki 1952, Melbourne 1956, Rome 1960

Medals: 10, Gold 7, Silver 1, Bronze 2

Total country medals: 498

Bottom line: Widely regarded as the greatest Olympic swordsman of all time, Hungarian hero Aladar Gerevich is the only athlete, ever, to win a gold medal in the same event six different times.

Gerevich won his first and final gold medals a staggering 28 years apart — a record tied by New Zealand equestrian Mark Todd in 2012.

One great story about Gerevich came in 1960 when the Hungarian Olympic Committee told him he was too old to compete at 50 years old. Gerevich challenged every one of the Hungarian Olympic hopefuls to duels — and yes, he beat them all.

12. Canada: Cindy Klassen, Speed Skating

Born: Aug. 12, 1979 (Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada)

Olympics: Salt Lake City 2002, Turin 2006

Medals: 6, Gold 1, Silver 2, Bronze 3

Total country medals: 501

Bottom line: Winnipeg native Cindy Klassen is the only Canadian to win five Olympic medals in a single games and the first female speed skater to win five medals in a single games, which she did at the Winter Olympics in Turin in 2006.

Klassen actually started her career as a hockey player and was on the junior national team until she was left off the Olympic roster in 1998 and switched to speed skating.

11. Australia: Ian Thorpe, Swimming

Born: Oct. 13, 1982 (Sydney, Australia)

Olympics: Sydney 2000, Athens 2004

Medals: 9, Gold 5, Silver 3, Bronze 1

Total country medals: 512

Bottom line: Ian Thorpe wasn't just Australia's greatest Olympian. His swimming career was also the inspiration for Olympian Michael Phelps, according to famed coach Bob Bowman.

What's amazing about Thorpe, who also has 11 world championships, is that he won his nine Olympic medals over the course of just two Olympic games in 2000 and 2004.

10. Norway: Margit Bjorgen, Cross Country Skiing

Born: March 21, 1980 (Trondheim, Norway)

Olympics: Salt Lake City 2002, Turin 2006, Vancouver 2010, Sochi 2014, Pyeongchang 2018

Medals: 15, Gold 8, Silver 4, Bronze 3

Total country medals: 520

Bottom line: Margit Bjorgen is not only the greatest Olympian to come from Norway. She's also probably the greatest cross-country skier of all time with 15 Olympic medals and a record 114 wins in sanctioned World Cup events.

What's more incredible about Bjorgen is she battled asthma throughout her career but had to forgo most traditional medications because they were banned by competition committees.

9. Russia: Alexei Nemov, Gymnastics

Born: May 28, 1976 (Barashevo, Mordovian ASSR, Soviet Union)

Olympics: Atlanta 1996, Sydney 2000

Medals: 12, Gold 4, Silver 2, Bronze 6

Total country medals: 547

Bottom line: Alexei Nemov was abandoned by his father when he was just a baby and was in gymnastics by 5 years old, ascending to become one of the greatest Olympic champions in Russian history.

Nemov started competing in international competitions in 1993 when he was 16 years old, and he won six Olympic medals at the 1996 games in Atlanta, including individual wins in the vault and the high bar.

8. China: Wu Minxia, Diving

Born: Nov. 10, 1985 (Shanghai, China)

Olympics: Athens 2004, Beijing 2008, London 2012, Rio de Janeiro 2016

Medals: 7, Gold 5, Silver 1, Bronze 1

Total country medals: 608

Bottom line: From 2001 to 2016, Wu Minxia represented China in every Olympics, Asian Games and World Aquatics Championships. She won five gold medals spread over four different Olympic games.

One of the most decorated divers of all time, Wu won an additional eight world championships on top of her Olympic medals.

7. Sweden: Sixten Jernberg, Cross-Country Skiing

Born: Feb. 6, 1929 (Lima, Sweden)

Died: July 14, 2012 (age 83, Mora, Sweden)

Olympics: Cortina d'Ampezzo 1956, Squaw Valley 1960, Innsbruck 1964

Medals: 9, Gold 4, Silver 3, Bronze 2

Total country medals: 652

Bottom line: One of the greatest cross-country skiers of all time and the leading Olympic medalist in Swedish history, Sixten Jernberg never finished worse than fifth place in 12 Olympic events over his career and won medals in nine of those events.

In a five-year stretch from 1955 to 1960, Jernberg won 86 competitions out of the 161 that he entered. Fun fact: Jergenberg's day job was as a lumberjack and blacksmith.

6. Italy: Edoardo Mangiarotti, Fencing

Born: April 7, 1919 (Renate, Italy)

Died: May 25, 2012 (age 93, Milan, Italy)

Olympics: Berlin 1936, London 1948, Helsinki 1952, Melbourne 1956, Rome 1960

Medals: 13, Gold 6, Silver 5, Bronze 2

Total country medals: 701

Bottom line: Italian fencer Edoardo Mangiarotti's 39 combined Olympic medals and world championships are more than anyone else in the history of his sport.

Mangiarotti's career as an elite fencer was literally planned from birth. His father, Giuseppe Mangiarotti, was a famous Milanese fencer and taught his son, who is naturally right-handed, to fence left-handed to give him an advantage.

Edoardo's older brother, Dario, won three Olympic medals, including one gold and two silvers.

5. France: Roger Ducret, Fencing

Born: April 2, 1888 (Paris, France)

Died: Jan. 8, 1962 (age 73, Paris, France)

Olympics: Antwerp 1920, Paris 1924, Amsterdam 1928

Medals: 8, Gold 3, Silver 4, Bronze 1

Total country medals: 840

Bottom line: Roger Ducret became an Olympic fencing champion after he fought in World War I and was a prisoner of war.

Ducret was at his best in the 1924 Olympics in Paris, where he won five medals and his only individual gold medal in the foil.

Following his famed Olympic career and retirement from competition, Ducret spent the rest of his working life as a journalist for some of France's largest newspapers.

4. Germany: Birgit Fischer, Canoeing

Born: Feb. 25 1962 (Brandenburg an der Havel, East Germany)

Olympics: Moscow 1980, Seoul 1988, Barcelona 1992, Atlanta 1996, Sydney 2000, Athens 2004

Medals: 12, Gold 8, Silver 4

Total country medals: 855

Bottom line: Canoeing star Birgit Fischer set a record with eight gold medals over six different Olympic games — and she didn't compete in the 1984 Olympics because of a boycott.

Fischer has another pretty amazing record. She is the youngest Olympic champion in canoeing and the oldest because she won her first gold medal at 18 years old and her last gold medal at 42 years old.

Her niece, Fanny, competed for Germany in the 2008 Olympics.

3. Great Britain: Bradley Wiggins, Cycling

Born: April 28, 1980 (Ghent, Flanders, Belgium)

Olympics: Sydney 2000, Athens 2004, Beijing 2008, London 2012, Rio de Janeiro 2016

Medals: 8, Gold 5, Silver 1, Bronze 2

Total country medals: 883

Bottom line: Bradley Wiggins — Sir Bradley Wiggins if you're into that sort of thing — is the only cyclist in history to win Olympic gold medals and world championships in cycling and road races as well as win the Tour de France.

The son of Australian pro cyclist Gary Wiggins, Bradley Wiggins won an Olympic gold medal and the Tour de France just one week apart in 2012.

Wiggins ended up competing in five different Olympics for Great Britain, winning medals each time and winning gold in his final four Olympics.

2. Soviet Union: Larisa Latynina, Gymnastics

Born: Dec. 27, 1934 (Kherson, Ukrainian SSR, Soviet Union)

Olympics: Melbourne 1956, Rome 1960, Tokyo 1964

Medals: 18, Gold 9, Silver 5, Bronze 4

Total country medals: 1,204

Bottom line: Larisa Latynina's nine gold medals are the most for any Olympic gymnast and the second-most gold medals for any Olympian, ever.

Her 18 medals were the most medals won by any Olympian from 1964 until 2012, and she's still the only woman to win gold in the team, all-around and an individual event in a single Olympics. Twice.

She retired from competition in 1966 and was just as good as a coach, leading the Soviet Union to team gold in 1968, 1972 and 1976, then overseeing the entire 1980 Olympics gymnastics competition in Moscow.

1. United States: Michael Phelps, Swimming

Born: June 30, 1985 (Baltimore, Maryland)

Olympics: Sydney 2000, Athens 2004, Beijing 2008, London 2012, Rio de Janeiro 2016

Medals: 28, Gold 23, Silver 3, Bronze 2

Total country medals: 2,828

Bottom line: Baltimore native Michael Phelps is usually the first name that comes up when we discuss the greatest Olympians of all time. He holds the records for the most Olympic medals, most Olympic gold medals and most Olympic gold medals in individual events.

There's not even a debate about who is the greatest U.S. Olympian. It's Phelps. He held national records for swimming by the time he was 10 years old and swam in the Olympics for the first time in 2000 at just 15 years old, becoming the youngest male Olympian since 1932.

Need we say more?