Is Michael Phelps swimming in the Olympics? What to know about USA swimmer's role at 2024 Summer Games

Bryan Murphy

Is Michael Phelps swimming in the Olympics? What to know about USA swimmer's role at 2024 Summer Games image

The world may never see an Olympian as dominant as Michael Phelps. 

The 28-time medalist is among the greatest athletes to ever participate in a competition. Phelps dazzled the world every four years with his excellence in the pool, representing the red, white and blue and bringing home a plethora of medals to the United States. 

It wasn't just the Olympic Games either. Between the Olympics, World Championships and Pan Pacific Championships, Phelps amassed 66 first-place medals, 14 silver medals and three bronze medals. His resume stacks up against almost any other athlete in any sport, including Tiger Woods, Michael Jordan and Serena Williams. 

Phelps is scheduled to be in Paris for the 2024 Olympics, and he will be at the Paris La Defense Arena when the swimming events take place. However, he will be a lot dryer this time around than in the past. 

Here is what to know about Phelps' involvement at the 2024 Paris Olympics. 

MORE: Where Michael Phelps ranks among the greatest Summer Olympians

Is Michael Phelps swimming in the Olympics?

Phelps' days competing in the pool around behind him. The Olympic legend officially retired from swimming after the 2016 Rio Olympics and has not competed since. 

Initially, Phelps announced that he planned on retiring after the 2012 London Olympics, however, he elected to come back and compete in Rio four years later. He proved he very much still had it, capturing five gold medals — including in two individual events — and added a silver medal to his resume.

While he won't be swimming at the 2024 Paris Olympics, there is still a role for Phelps to play. NBC is bringing the swimmer back for its broadcast coverage. He will be live in France to work daytime and primetime coverage as an analyst. 

"We are excited to have Michael return to our coverage across both daytime and primetime, and of course, the place where no one knows more about winning — at the pool," said Molly Solomon, executive producer and president of NBC Olympics Production.

"With his ability to analyze and entertain, our viewers are in for another gold-medal performance."

Phelps will join Dan Hicks and Rowdy Gaines in the booth for the swimming events in Paris. 

How old is Michael Phelps?

Born on June 30, 1985, Phelps is 39 years old. 

He made his Olympic debut as a 15-year-old at the 2000 Olympics in Sydney, Australia. He reached the finals in the 200-meter butterfly, though he placed only fifth, failing to win any medals in his first Olympics. 

How many Olympic medals has Michael Phelps won? 

There is no Olympian in the world that can match Phelps for total medals or gold medals. 

The American swimmer has 28 Olympic medals in total, with 23 being gold. The other five consist of three silver and two bronze medals.

Of his 23 gold medals, 13 are for individual events, which is also a record among Olympians. 

OlympicsGoldSilverBronze
2000 Sydney000
2004 Athens602
2008 Beijing800
2012 London420
2016 Rio510

Bryan Murphy

Bryan Murphy Photo

Bryan Murphy joined The Sporting News in 2022 as the NHL/Canada content producer. Previously he worked for NBC Sports on their national news desk reporting on breaking news for the NFL, MLB, NBA and NHL, in addition to covering the 2020 and 2022 Olympic Games. A graduate of Quinnipiac University, he spent time in college as a beat reporter covering the men’s ice hockey team.