Those who cheer for the red, white, and blue have been treated to two of the greatest swimmers to ever grace an Olympic pool.
Over the course of five Olympics from 2000 to 2016, Michael Phelps dominated in the water. The American male swimmer put together record-breaking performance after performance, racking up a plethora of golf medals in the process. He broke out at the 2004 Olympics in Athens and concluded his exceptional career with another stellar showing in 2016 at the Rio Olympics.
During the back end of his career, another American swim star emerged — Katie Ledecky. The freestyle specialist became the world's best distance swimmer during the 2012 Olympics in London, and it's a title she holds onto today.
While the two have never gone head-to-head in the swimming pool together for a medal, the pair are a crucial part of the United States' history at the Olympics. Ledecky and Phelps go down as two of the greatest Olympians ever, with a stack of medals to prove it.
How do their careers compare against one another? The Sporting News takes a look:
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Katie Ledecky vs. Michael Phelps medals
Ledecky may be considered one of the best swimmers of all time, but no one is coming close to Phelps' medal count.
There is no swimmer on the planet who has won as many gold medals as Phelps has in the sport. No Olympian has won more gold medals than the American swimmer and it isn't close. Phelps won 23 Olympic gold medals to go along with 27 total FINA World Championship golds, and 16 Pan Pacific golds.
In total, he has 66 gold medals, 14 silver, and three bronze medals.
Of course, it would be unfair to mention that Phelps has several years on Ledecky, so, obviously, the totals right now aren't going to be even. With that said, Ledecky also started picking up medals earlier in her career, much like Phelps.
Ledecky claimed her first Olympic gold at 15, and since then, she has earned seven Olympic gold medals, 21 long-course FINA World Championship golds, and eight Pan Pacific golds.
So far at the 2024 Olympics, Ledecky has won a single bronze medal, but she is expected to add more hardware soon. As of now, it gives her a total of 36 golds, nine silvers, and two bronze.
| Katie Ledecky | Medal | Michael Phelps |
| 7 | Olympic gold | 23 |
| 3 | Olympic silver | 3 |
| 1 | Olympic bronze | 2 |
| 11 | Olympic total | 28 |
| 21 | World Championships gold | 27 |
| 5 | World Championships silver | 6 |
| 0 | World Championships bronze | 1 |
| 26 | World Championships total | 34 |
| 8 | Pan Pacific gold | 16 |
| 1 | Pan Pacific silver | 5 |
| 1 | Pan Pacific bronze | 0 |
| 10 | Pan Pacific total | 21 |
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Phelps' versatility helped him pick up so many different medals in his career. He won international gold medals in three of the five individual styles: the butterfly, individual medley, and freestyle. Phelps also competed in all three relays: 4x100m freestyle, 4x200 freestyle, and 4x100 medley relay.
On the other hand, Ledecky has been the world's best distance swimmer since age 15, but she has only earned medals in the freestyle events internationally. It's no knock on the current swim sensation, but it's easy to understand why catching Phelps may be out of the question.
