- 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 Swimming Butterfly of all time
This ranking uses verified career records and GOAT Rank's published model. Every listed athlete clears the data eligibility threshold.
#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–— | 87.8 |
| 43 | Mary T. Meagher | Swimming | 🇺🇸 United States | 1979–1988 | 86.7 |
| 66 | Zhang Yufei | Swimming | 🇨🇳 China | 2013–— | 85 |
| 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–— | 81.1 |
| 154 | Kristóf Milák | Swimming | 🇭🇺 Hungary | 2016–— | 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–— | 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?
Only verified athletes with sufficient career history, metrics, honours and independent sources are eligible.
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