As we look forward to yet another fantastic summer of sport in Paris, many people will look back to the previous Olympic Games and reminisce about the previous heroes of this historic competition. There are many Olympians that people will associate with the best to ever appear at the games, but who are the most decorated Olympians of all time?
5- Ole Einar Bjorndalen- Biathlon/Cross-Country Skiing
Norway
Born in 1974 in Drammen, Norway, Bjorndalen is one of two Winter Olympians to feature in the most successful athletes of all time in the games. He followed his brother Dag into Biathlon where he began to compete professionally before he left home at the young age of 16 to enter a sports academy in Geilo.
His first Olympic appearance came in 1994 for the Winter Games in Lillehammer, but his best finish was 28th place. However, his progression in the years following that saw him more ready than ever for the 1998 games, where he would win a gold and silver medal in Nagano.
In 2002, his three gold medals in the individual Biathlon events alongside a gold in the 7.5km relay meant he became the third ever athlete to win four gold medals at the same Olympic Games, and the first Biathlete to win more than two gold medals at a single competition.
Bjordalen would continue over the years to earn more and more medals throughout multiple Olympic Games. His career would finally reach an end in 2018, after he was left out of the Norweigan Biathlon squad for the games in Pyongchang despite winning seven World Championship medals in the time between the 2014 and 2018 games.
He would announce his retirement after a truly remarkable career shortly after this decision after he announced concerns around a heart mumur. A fantastic Olympian and the second most successful Winter Olympian ever, Bjordalen was certainly one of the very best.
4- Nikolay Andrianov- Gymnastics
U.S.S.R.
The most successful male gymnast ever, Andrianov is a massive part of Olympic history. He began his career in gymnastics at 12 years old, which is considered very late for the typical gymnast. Despite this, he developed very quickly under coach and surrogate father Nikolay Tolkachov.
His selection for the Soviet National Team in 1970 meant he debuted at the Olympics in 1972 in Munich. He won three medals including a gold in the floor exercise in what was a historic debut for Tolkachov.
He would go on to make more history in Montreal in the following Olympics, as he would win seven medals including four gold medals to become the most decorated Olympian at that edition of the games.
He would go on to dominate not just in the Olympics, but across both the World Championships and the World Cup of Gymnastics in the years after his record-breaking year in Montreal. This included him introducing the triple somersault dismount at this time.
He would go on to retire in 1980 and was inducted into the Gymnastics Hall of Fame in 2001, before he passed away in March 2011 aged just 58.
3- Marit Bjorgen- Cross-Country Skiing
Norway
Although Bjorndalen was an incredible skier, Bjorgen holds the record as the most successful Winter Olympian of all time.
Born in Trondheim, Norway in 1980, she took the normal route for young children getting into skiing in Norway. She began competing at the age of seven and showed very quick progression throughout her childhood.
Her first Olympic Games came in the 2002 Winter Olympics in Salt Lake City and she started off brilliantly. She won her first medal in the 4x5km relay as team Norway won silver.
She would then continue her form in the World Cup and World Championships in the time between the 2002 and 2006 Games, picking up multiple gold medals in her bid to find success again in 2006. She did just that, as she won yet another silver medal in the 10km race in Turin.
However, after disappointing performances in the 2007 and 2009 World Championships, there were concerns that she would not be able to continue her Olympic medal-winning form into the Vancouver Games. However, the worries were put to bed very quickly.
Bjorgen went on to have a break-out year, winning five medals three of them being gold. This paired with a silver and a bronze meant that she was the most-successful individual athlete across the whole of the 2010 Winter Olympics.
She would then continue to perform on the biggest stage, collecting another three gold medals in Sochi in 2014 to become one of the most decorated female Olympians in history. Her form throughout the events in between 2014 and 2018 meant she was well-prepared for the 2018 games.
Bjorgen would go on to collect three gold, one silver, and two bronze medals in Pyongchang, meaning she became the most decorated Winter Olympian ever, surpassing Bjorndalen who was not selected for the games. She would then announce her retirement from competitive skiing in April 2018.
2- Larisa Latynina- Gymnastics
U.S.S.R
The oldest Olympian to feature in the top five, Latynina is the most successful female Olympian of all time.
Born in Ukraine in 1934, Latynina was one of the lucky survivors in a Nazi-Germany-occupied Ukraine throughout WWII. After the war ended, Latynina began ballet lessons as a child but converted to gymnastics soon after.
After gaining her first sports degree, she debuted on the big stage in the 1954 World Championships before making her Olympic debut two years later at the age of just 21.
In her Olympic debut, she won the all-around, vault, and floor exercise competitions as she announced herself as one of the best gymnasts on the planet in just her first competition.
She would go on to win the floor exercise in the next two consecutive Olympics as well as winning six gold medals for the Soviet Union Olympic Team between 1956 and 1964. This partnered with five silver and four bronze medals took her total medals to an astonishing 18.
She retired after the World Championships in 1966 but is still the most decorated female athlete ever and will likely not be beaten for a long time.
1- Michael Phelps- Swimming
USA
A man who can likely be labelled as the best athlete to ever live, Michael Phelps is the obvious winner to be labelled as the best Olympian ever.
Born into a family of swimmers in 1985, he joined the infamous North Baltimore Aquatic Club when he was seven years old. He developed at a rate so fast that at the age of just 15, he qualified for the 2000 Olympic Games.
He did not win a medal, but he managed to finish fifth in the 200-meter butterfly finals as he announced himself to the Olympic World. However, just four years later, it was truly the start of something great for Phelps.
He went on to win six gold and two bronze medals in Athens, setting two world records and three Olympic records along the way in a record-breaking Olympic debut. This was one of the most impressive Olympic performances ever, but it was not even the best in his career.
In 2008, Phelps competed in eight swimming events. He went on to win gold in every single one and set the world record in seven of the events, with the 100m butterfly being an Olympic record. His eighth medal meant he became the first Olympian to ever win eight medals in one competition, beating out his fellow American Mark Spitz’s record of seven.
He would go on to win another five gold medals at London 2012 before he announced his retirement at the end of the competition. However, it was a short-lived retirement as he returned to the sport in 2014, with the intent of competing one more time in the Olympics in 2016.
Phelps went on to win another five gold medals in Rio which took his overall gold medal tally to 23, cementing himself as the best Olympian and arguable athlete to ever live.
