Paris Olympics 2024: Most decorated athletes in Olympic history

The Paris Olympics 2024 is here, and in a short while from now, some of the best athletes in the world will compete for the top honors across 32 disciplines. As the Paris Olympics 2024 gets underway, here is a look at the most successful Olympians of all time.

Michael Phelps

It is said that if American swimming legend Michael Phelps were a country, he would still be 39th on the all-time Olympic gold medal table. That is because Phelps, who retired after the 2016 Rio Olympics, is the most successful athlete in the history of the games.

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Phelps, who made his Olympic debut at the Sydney Games in 2000 at the age of 15, hung up his boots sixteen years later with 28 medals, which include a record 23 gold, 3 silver, and 2 bronze.

Larisa Latynina

Larisa Latynina from the former Soviet Union is the second-most successful Olympian and the most successful female athlete in the history of the games. Latynina's Olympic medal tally stands at an impressive 18, which includes 9 gold, 5 silver, and 4 bronze in gymnastics.

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Latynina, who made her Olympic debut at the 1956 Melbourne Games at the age of 21, is only one of four athletes to have won nine gold medals and one of only three women to have won the same event three times.

Nikolai Andrianov

Joining Latynina in the third spot on the list of most successful Olympians of all time is fellow Soviet gymnast Nikolai Andrianov. He made his Olympic debut in 1972 in Munich, winning a gold medal.

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Andrianov's best performance at an Olympics was in 1976 when he won four golds, two silvers, and a bronze. When he hung up his boots after the 1980 Olympics, Andrianov's medal tally stood at 15, which included 7 gold, 5 silver, and 3 bronze¡ªthe highest for any male athlete until his record was broken by Phelps in 2012.

Boris Shakhlin

Another Soviet gymnast, Boris Shakhlin, is the fourth-highest medal winner in the history of the Summer Olympics. Between 1956 and 1964, Shakhlin won a total of 13 medals, including 7 gold, 4 silver, and 2 bronze.

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He held the record for the most medals won by any male athlete until it was broken by Andrianov.

Edoardo Mangiarotti

Italian fencer Edoardo Mangiarotti is the fifth-most successful Olympic athlete, having won a grand total of 13 medals. This includes 6 gold, 5 silver, and 2 bronze.

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Takashi Ono

Japanese gymnast Takashi Ono made his Olympic debut in 1952 at the Helsinki Games. He also competed in the 1956, 1960, and 1964 Olympics and won a total of 13 medals, which included 5 gold, 4 silver, and 4 bronze medals.

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Paavo Nurmi

Finnish long-distance runner Paavo Nurmi made his Olympic debut at the 1920 Antwerp Games. He took the competition by storm, winning gold medals in the 10,000m, the cross-country individual and team events. He also claimed a silver in the 5,000m. He competed in his last Olympics in the 1928 Amsterdam Games and ended with a medal haul of 12, including 9 gold and 3 silver.

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He could not compete in the 1932 Olympic Games as in those days only amateur athletes were allowed to take part, and the IAAF held that Nurmi was a professional.

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