Match Facts About Olympic Greats

Study Notes

Usain Bolt holds the record for the fastest 100-meter dash at 9.58 seconds, achieved at the 2009 World Championships in Berlin.
Bolt set an Olympic record of 9.63 seconds during the 2012 London Games, surpassing his previous Olympic time of 9.69 seconds from the 2008 Beijing Games.
He is the only athlete to have recorded the top two Olympic times and the world record in the 100-meter dash.
Additionally, Bolt holds both the Olympic and world records for the 200-meter dash.

Nadia Comaneci is a five-time Olympic gold medalist and the first gymnast to receive a perfect score of 10 at the 1976 Montreal Olympics.
Due to scoreboard limitations at the time, her perfect score was displayed as 1.00.
The International Gymnastics Federation amended the scoring system in 2006, eliminating the possibility of a perfect 10.
While Mary Lou Retton achieved perfect 10s in the 1984 Olympics, Comaneci remains the standard for perfection in gymnastics.

Kim Yun-mi, a South Korean speed skater, won gold in the women's 3,000-meter relay at the 1994 Lillehammer Winter Olympics, becoming the youngest Olympic gold medalist at 13 years and 86 days old.
The record for the youngest Olympic gold medalist is expected to remain unbroken.
The International Skating Union has since raised the minimum qualifying age to 15 to protect young athletes’ development.

Canadian equestrian Ian Miller has participated in 10 Olympic Games from 1972 to 2012, the highest number of Olympic participations for any athlete.
The next closest competitors, each with eight appearances, are Hubert Raudaschl, Afanasijs Kuzmins, and Nino Salukvadze, none of whom are still active.
Miller earned a silver medal in team jumping during the 2008 Beijing Games, but he never won an Olympic gold.

Table tennis was introduced in the Olympics during the 1988 Seoul Games, with China securing 32 out of 37 available gold medals over the years.
South Korea follows as the closest competitor with three gold medals, while Japan and Sweden have each claimed two.
China's overall achievements include 20 silver and eight bronze medals, showcasing unmatched dominance in the sport.

Hungarian fencer Aladar Gerevich dominated the sport with six consecutive gold medals across the 1932 to 1960 Olympics, despite two cancellations due to World War II.
His remarkable career is characterized by skill, consistency, and endurance, leading him to be regarded as the greatest fencer in history.
Sir Steve Redgrave, a British rower, also won five consecutive gold medals between 1984 and 2000.

The United States achieved a historic milestone by winning 239 medals (78 gold, 82 silver, 79 bronze) at the 1904 St. Louis Olympics, capturing nearly 85% of all available medals.
As of 2024, the U.S. has accumulated 1,183 gold medals overall, the highest in Olympic history, while the Soviet Union and Russian Federation follow with 473 golds.
The 1,000 gold medal milestone was achieved at the 2016 Rio Olympics, making it the first nation to reach this figure.

Michael Phelps amassed 23 gold medals during his Olympic career, reaching his 23rd at the 2016 Rio Games.
He set a single-Olympic record with eight gold medals at the 2008 Beijing Olympics.
Phelps won over 80% of events he entered, with a staggering total of 28 medals throughout his career.
The previous record for most career medals was held by Larisa Latynina with 18 medals (nine gold) from 1956 to 1964, highlighting Phelps' unmatched dominance in swimming.