Michael Phelps

Michael Fred Phelps II (born June 30, 1985) is an American former competitive swimmer who holds the record for winning more Olympic medals than any other athlete, totaling 28 across four Olympic Games. He also holds all-time records for Olympic gold medals (23), individual Olympic gold medals (13), and individual Olympic medals (16). Across the Olympics, World Championships, and Pan Pacific Championships, Phelps won 82 medals in major international long-course competition, including 65 gold, 14 silver, and three bronze.

Phelps was born in Baltimore, Maryland, and raised in nearby Towson as the youngest of three children. His mother was a middle school principal and his father was a retired Maryland State Trooper. His parents divorced in 1994, which strongly impacted him. During his school years at Rodgers Forge Elementary, Dumbarton Middle School, and Towson High School, Phelps experienced bullying related to his attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), with which he was diagnosed in sixth grade. He began swimming at age seven and set a national age-group record by age 10, when he began training under coach Bob Bowman at the North Baltimore Aquatic Club.

At age 15, Phelps qualified for the 2000 Summer Olympics, becoming the youngest male to make a U.S. Olympic swim team in 68 years and placing fifth in the 200-meter butterfly. In 2001, he became the youngest male to set a swimming world record when he broke the 200-meter butterfly record, later winning his first world title in Fukuoka, Japan. Over the next two years, he set multiple world and American records across individual medley, butterfly, and freestyle events, winning five medals at the 2002 Pan Pacific Championships and six medals at the 2003 World Championships.

At the 2004 Summer Olympics in Athens, Phelps won six gold and two bronze medals, tying the record for most medals at a single Games. At the 2008 Beijing Olympics, he won eight gold medals, breaking Mark Spitz's 1972 record for most first-place finishes at a single Games. He followed this by winning four gold and two silver medals at the 2012 London Olympics.

After announcing his retirement following the 2012 Games, Phelps returned to competition in April 2014. At the 2016 Rio de Janeiro Olympics, he served as the U.S. flag bearer during the Parade of Nations and earned five gold medals and one silver medal. This marked the fourth consecutive Olympics in which he was the most successful athlete of the Games. He announced his second retirement on August 12, 2016.

Phelps's accolades include eight World Swimmer of the Year awards, eleven American Swimmer of the Year awards, the 2008 Sports Illustrated Sportsman of the Year award, and the 2017 Laureus World Comeback of the Year Award. Following the 2008 Games, he founded the Michael Phelps Foundation to promote healthier lifestyles and grow the sport of swimming. Throughout his career, Phelps trained under coach Bob Bowman, following him to train at the University of Michigan and later Arizona State University.