Michael Phelps has won the most Olympic gold medals, 23, followed by Johannes Høsflot Klæbo with 11. Six athletes share third on 9, and 11 more have 8, so this top 10 runs to 19 names.
Michael Phelps, USA, has won the most Olympic gold medals, with 23. Johannes Høsflot Klæbo (Norway) is second with 11. Six athletes tie for third with 9: Larisa Latynina, Katie Ledecky, Paavo Nurmi, Mark Spitz, Caeleb Dressel and Carl Lewis. Counts cover Summer and Winter Games through Milano Cortina 2026.
Winning an Olympic gold medal is the pinnacle of athletic achievement. A small group of athletes have done it far more often than anyone else, usually through dominance across several Games in sports with many medal events. This list ranks athletes by career Olympic gold medals, team and relay events included, across all Summer and Winter Games through Paris 2024 and Milano Cortina 2026. Because 11 athletes are tied on 8 golds at the cut-off, all of them are listed, giving 19 entries.
Each dot = 1 gold medal
Michael Phelps holds the record with 23 Olympic gold medals, 12 more than anyone else. He won 8 of them at Beijing 2008, the most golds at a single Games, and finished with 28 medals in all.
Johannes Høsflot Klæbo won all six men's cross-country events at Milano Cortina 2026, the first athlete to win six golds at one Winter Games. That took his career total to 11 golds, the most of any Winter Olympian and second only to Phelps overall.
Larisa Latynina won 9 golds and 18 medals in gymnastics. Her 18 medals stood as the all-time record until Phelps passed it in 2012, and no woman has won more Olympic medals.
Katie Ledecky has won 9 golds across four Games, including the 800m freestyle at every Olympics from 2012 to 2024.
Paavo Nurmi, the 'Flying Finn', won 9 golds in middle- and long-distance running across three Games.
Mark Spitz won 7 golds at Munich 1972, a single-Games record until Phelps won 8 in 2008, plus 2 relay golds in 1968.
Caeleb Dressel won 9 golds across the 2016, 2020 and 2024 Games, in individual sprint events and relays.
Carl Lewis won 9 golds across four Games, including four consecutive long jump titles (1984–1996) and four golds at Los Angeles 1984.
Isabell Werth has won 8 golds and 14 medals in dressage, with medals spanning 1992 to 2024.
Marit Bjørgen won 8 golds in cross-country skiing. Her 15 medals are the most won by any Winter Olympian.
Ole Einar Bjørndalen won 8 golds and 14 medals in biathlon, including 4 golds at Salt Lake City 2002.
Bjørn Dæhlie won 8 golds in cross-country skiing across the 1992, 1994 and 1998 Winter Games.
Birgit Fischer won 8 golds in canoe sprint for East Germany and then unified Germany, 24 years apart from first to last (1980–2004).
Sawao Katō won 8 golds in gymnastics across three Games.
Jenny Thompson won 8 golds, mostly in relays, across four Games.
Matt Biondi won 8 golds in freestyle sprints and relays across three Games.
Lisa Carrington has won 8 golds in canoe sprint across four Games.
Usain Bolt won the 100m and 200m at three straight Games and finished with 8 golds; his 2008 4x100m relay gold was withdrawn in 2017 after a teammate's doping retest.
Ray Ewry won 8 golds in the standing jumps. He also won 2 at the 1906 Intercalated Games, which the IOC does not count.
| # | Name | Sport | Country | Medal-winning years | Total medals |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Michael Phelps, USA | Swimming | USA | 2004–2016 | 28 (23 gold, 3 silver, 2 bronze) |
| 2 | Johannes Høsflot Klæbo, Norway | Cross-country skiing | Norway | 2018–2026 | 13 (11 gold, 1 silver, 1 bronze) |
| 3 | Larisa Latynina, USSR | Gymnastics | USSR | 1956–1964 | 18 (9 gold, 5 silver, 4 bronze) |
| 4 | Katie Ledecky, USA | Swimming | USA | 2012–2024 | 14 (9 gold, 4 silver, 1 bronze) |
| 5 | Paavo Nurmi, Finland | Athletics | Finland | 1920–1928 | 12 (9 gold, 3 silver, 0 bronze) |
| 6 | Mark Spitz, USA | Swimming | USA | 1968–1972 | 11 (9 gold, 1 silver, 1 bronze) |
| 7 | Caeleb Dressel, USA | Swimming | USA | 2016–2024 | 10 (9 gold, 1 silver, 0 bronze) |
| 8 | Carl Lewis, USA | Athletics | USA | 1984–1996 | 10 (9 gold, 1 silver, 0 bronze) |
| 9 | Isabell Werth, Germany | Equestrian (dressage) | Germany | 1992–2024 | 14 (8 gold, 6 silver, 0 bronze) |
| 10 | Marit Bjørgen, Norway | Cross-country skiing | Norway | 2002–2018 | 15 (8 gold, 4 silver, 3 bronze) |
| 11 | Ole Einar Bjørndalen, Norway | Biathlon | Norway | 1998–2014 | 14 (8 gold, 4 silver, 2 bronze) |
| 12 | Bjørn Dæhlie, Norway | Cross-country skiing | Norway | 1992–1998 | 12 (8 gold, 4 silver, 0 bronze) |
| 13 | Birgit Fischer, Germany | Canoe sprint | East Germany / Germany | 1980–2004 | 12 (8 gold, 4 silver, 0 bronze) |
| 14 | Sawao Katō, Japan | Gymnastics | Japan | 1968–1976 | 12 (8 gold, 3 silver, 1 bronze) |
| 15 | Jenny Thompson, USA | Swimming | USA | 1992–2004 | 12 (8 gold, 3 silver, 1 bronze) |
| 16 | Matt Biondi, USA | Swimming | USA | 1984–1992 | 11 (8 gold, 2 silver, 1 bronze) |
| 17 | Lisa Carrington, New Zealand | Canoe sprint | New Zealand | 2012–2024 | 9 (8 gold, 0 silver, 1 bronze) |
| 18 | Usain Bolt, Jamaica | Athletics | Jamaica | 2008–2016 | 8 (8 gold, 0 silver, 0 bronze) |
| 19 | Ray Ewry, USA | Athletics | USA | 1900–1908 | 8 (8 gold, 0 silver, 0 bronze) |
Athletes are ranked by career Olympic gold medals, Summer and Winter Games combined, using the career table in Wikipedia's List of multiple Olympic gold medalists (current through Paris 2024 and Milano Cortina 2026). Medals from the 1906 Intercalated Games are excluded, as the IOC does not recognise them; medals withdrawn for doping are excluded. Athletes with the same gold total are tied; within a tie they are listed in the source table's order (more silvers, then more bronzes, first), and the rank number is a list position, not a tie-break. The tenth position falls inside an 11-way tie at 8 golds, so all tied athletes are included.
Michael Phelps, USA, holds the record with 23 Olympic gold medals, all in swimming, won at the 2004, 2008, 2012 and 2016 Games.
Larisa Latynina (USSR) and Katie Ledecky (USA) share the women's record with 9 gold medals each.
Johannes Høsflot Klæbo (Norway, cross-country skiing) has the most Winter Olympic golds with 11, after winning six at Milano Cortina 2026. Marit Bjørgen, Ole Einar Bjørndalen and Bjørn Dæhlie follow with 8 each. Bjørgen still holds the Winter record for total medals, with 15.
Eleven athletes are tied on 8 gold medals at the tenth position. Rather than drop some of them arbitrarily, all tied athletes are listed.
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