- Sport
- Swimming
- Career
- 2008–active
- Country
- 🇿🇦 South Africa
- Peak
- 92.0
- Dominance
- 84.0
- Statistics
- 88.0
- Honours
- 88.0
- Longevity
- 88.0
GOAT Rank · 21
Greatest Butterflys of all time
This ranking is led by Chad le Clos, Mary T. Meagher and Zhang Yufei. GOAT Rank currently ranks 21 eligible Swimming butterflys using verified career records across dominance, peak, longevity, honours and statistics.
Quick answer
According to GOAT Rank's current model, Chad le Clos ranks #1 on this list with a GOAT Score of 87.8.
How the GOAT Score is calculated →#AthleteGOAT Score
- Sport
- Swimming
- Career
- 1979–1988
- Country
- 🇺🇸 United States
- Peak
- 94.0
- Dominance
- 88.0
- Statistics
- 90.0
- Honours
- 86.0
- Longevity
- 76.0
- Sport
- Swimming
- Career
- 2013–active
- Country
- 🇨🇳 China
- Peak
- 92.0
- Dominance
- 82.0
- Statistics
- 86.0
- Honours
- 86.0
- Longevity
- 80.0
- Sport
- Swimming
- Career
- 1975–1980
- Country
- 🇺🇸 United States
- Peak
- 94.0
- Dominance
- 84.0
- Statistics
- 88.0
- Honours
- 84.0
- Longevity
- 64.0
- Sport
- Swimming
- Career
- 1976–1984
- Country
- 🇸🇪 Sweden
- Peak
- 94.0
- Dominance
- 80.0
- Statistics
- 88.0
- Honours
- 84.0
- Longevity
- 68.0
- Sport
- Swimming
- Career
- 1971–1976
- Country
- 🇺🇸 United States
- Peak
- 92.0
- Dominance
- 82.0
- Statistics
- 86.0
- Honours
- 84.0
- Longevity
- 66.0
- Sport
- Swimming
- Career
- 2017–active
- Country
- 🇦🇹 Austria
- Peak
- 90.0
- Dominance
- 78.0
- Statistics
- 88.0
- Honours
- 78.0
- Longevity
- 74.0
- Sport
- Swimming
- Career
- 2016–active
- Country
- 🇭🇺 Hungary
- Peak
- 90.0
- Dominance
- 80.0
- Statistics
- 86.0
- Honours
- 80.0
- Longevity
- 70.0
- Sport
- Swimming
- Career
- 2000–2016
- Country
- 🇺🇸 United States
- Peak
- 86.0
- Dominance
- 76.0
- Statistics
- 82.0
- Honours
- 82.0
- Longevity
- 80.0
- Sport
- Swimming
- Career
- 1979–1984
- Country
- 🇺🇸 United States
- Peak
- 92.0
- Dominance
- 82.0
- Statistics
- 88.0
- Honours
- 78.0
- Longevity
- 64.0
- Sport
- Swimming
- Career
- 1984–1992
- Country
- 🇺🇸 United States
- Peak
- 88.0
- Dominance
- 78.0
- Statistics
- 82.0
- Honours
- 80.0
- Longevity
- 74.0
- Sport
- Swimming
- Career
- 2003–2016
- Country
- 🇷🇸 Serbia
- Peak
- 92.0
- Dominance
- 74.0
- Statistics
- 86.0
- Honours
- 74.0
- Longevity
- 76.0
- Sport
- Swimming
- Career
- 1992–2000
- Country
- 🇷🇺 Russia
- Peak
- 90.0
- Dominance
- 78.0
- Statistics
- 82.0
- Honours
- 80.0
- Longevity
- 70.0
- Sport
- Swimming
- Career
- 1986–1993
- Country
- 🇸🇷 Suriname
- Peak
- 92.0
- Dominance
- 82.0
- Statistics
- 80.0
- Honours
- 78.0
- Longevity
- 66.0
- Sport
- Swimming
- Career
- 2010–2016
- Country
- 🇺🇸 United States
- Peak
- 88.0
- Dominance
- 78.0
- Statistics
- 84.0
- Honours
- 80.0
- Longevity
- 70.0
- Sport
- Swimming
- Career
- 1969–1976
- Country
- 🇯🇵 Japan
- Peak
- 92.0
- Dominance
- 78.0
- Statistics
- 80.0
- Honours
- 82.0
- Longevity
- 62.0
- Sport
- Swimming
- Career
- 2013–2019
- Country
- 🇺🇸 United States
- Peak
- 86.0
- Dominance
- 76.0
- Statistics
- 82.0
- Honours
- 80.0
- Longevity
- 70.0
- Sport
- Swimming
- Career
- 1989–1993
- Country
- 🇺🇸 United States
- Peak
- 90.0
- Dominance
- 74.0
- Statistics
- 84.0
- Honours
- 82.0
- Longevity
- 62.0
- Sport
- Swimming
- Career
- 1976–1980
- Country
- 🇺🇸 United States
- Peak
- 86.0
- Dominance
- 74.0
- Statistics
- 82.0
- Honours
- 80.0
- Longevity
- 66.0
- Sport
- Swimming
- Career
- 1990–1998
- Country
- 🇩🇪 Germany
- Peak
- 82.0
- Dominance
- 70.0
- Statistics
- 80.0
- Honours
- 76.0
- Longevity
- 76.0
- Sport
- Swimming
- Career
- 2017–active
- Country
- 🇮🇹 Italy
- Peak
- 84.0
- Dominance
- 68.0
- Statistics
- 82.0
- Honours
- 74.0
- Longevity
- 68.0
| # | Athlete | Sport | Country | Career | GOAT Score |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 22 | Chad le Clos | Swimming | 🇿🇦 South Africa | 2008–active | 87.8 |
| 43 | Mary T. Meagher | Swimming | 🇺🇸 United States | 1979–1988 | 86.7 |
| 66 | Zhang Yufei | Swimming | 🇨🇳 China | 2013–active | 85.0 |
| 112 | Mike Bruner | Swimming | 🇺🇸 United States | 1975–1980 | 82.6 |
| 115 | Pär Arvidsson | Swimming | 🇸🇪 Sweden | 1976–1984 | 82.4 |
| 128 | Robin Backhaus | Swimming | 🇺🇸 United States | 1971–1976 | 81.8 |
| 152 | Simon Bucher | Swimming | 🇦🇹 Austria | 2017–active | 81.1 |
| 154 | Kristóf Milák | Swimming | 🇭🇺 Hungary | 2016–active | 80.9 |
| 155 | Dana Vollmer | Swimming | 🇺🇸 United States | 2000–2016 | 80.9 |
| 164 | Craig Beardsley | Swimming | 🇺🇸 United States | 1979–1984 | 80.5 |
| 173 | Pablo Morales | Swimming | 🇺🇸 United States | 1984–1992 | 80.2 |
| 183 | Milorad Čavić | Swimming | 🇷🇸 Serbia | 2003–2016 | 79.8 |
| 184 | Denis Pankratov | Swimming | 🇷🇺 Russia | 1992–2000 | 79.8 |
| 185 | Anthony Nesty | Swimming | 🇸🇷 Suriname | 1986–1993 | 79.7 |
| 186 | Cammile Adams | Swimming | 🇺🇸 United States | 2010–2016 | 79.7 |
| 207 | Mayumi Aoki | Swimming | 🇯🇵 Japan | 1969–1976 | 78.7 |
| 212 | Sarah Gibson | Swimming | 🇺🇸 United States | 2013–2019 | 78.5 |
| 225 | Crissy Ahmann-Leighton | Swimming | 🇺🇸 United States | 1989–1993 | 77.9 |
| 232 | Melanie Buddemeyer | Swimming | 🇺🇸 United States | 1976–1980 | 77.2 |
| 242 | Dirk Braunleder | Swimming | 🇩🇪 Germany | 1990–1998 | 76.3 |
| 256 | Federico Burdisso | Swimming | 🇮🇹 Italy | 2017–active | 74.5 |
Compare the leaders
Chad le Clos vs Mary T. MeagherRead the full methodology
Sport lists use the raw In-Sport GOAT Score. Cross-sport lists use the official competition-depth adjustment. No scores are recalculated for this page.
Read the full methodologyFrequently asked questions
How is this ranking calculated?
Five verified components are weighted consistently: dominance, peak, longevity, honours and statistics.
Who is included?
According to GOAT Rank's current data model, only verified athletes with sufficient career history, metrics, honours and independent sources are eligible. Rank and score are read live.
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