- Sport
- Swimming
- Career
- 2018–active
- Country
- 🇺🇸 United States
- Peak
- 95.0
- Dominance
- 90.0
- Statistics
- 92.0
- Honours
- 92.0
- Longevity
- 82.0
GOAT Rank · 17
Greatest Swimming Distance freestyle 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
- 1976–1988
- Country
- 🇷🇺 Russia
- Peak
- 92.0
- Dominance
- 88.0
- Statistics
- 90.0
- Honours
- 86.0
- Longevity
- 80.0
- Sport
- Swimming
- Career
- 2004–2013
- Country
- 🏴 England
- Peak
- 96.0
- Dominance
- 86.0
- Statistics
- 90.0
- Honours
- 88.0
- Longevity
- 76.0
- Sport
- Swimming
- Career
- 1990–2000
- Country
- 🇦🇺 Australia
- Peak
- 94.0
- Dominance
- 88.0
- Statistics
- 90.0
- Honours
- 88.0
- Longevity
- 74.0
- Sport
- Swimming
- Career
- 1986–1996
- Country
- 🇺🇸 United States
- Peak
- 92.0
- Dominance
- 86.0
- Statistics
- 88.0
- Honours
- 88.0
- Longevity
- 78.0
- Sport
- Swimming
- Career
- 1996–2016
- Country
- 🇦🇺 Australia
- Peak
- 90.0
- Dominance
- 84.0
- Statistics
- 88.0
- Honours
- 86.0
- Longevity
- 84.0
- Sport
- Swimming
- Career
- 1956–1964
- Country
- 🇦🇺 Australia
- Peak
- 92.0
- Dominance
- 88.0
- Statistics
- 88.0
- Honours
- 86.0
- Longevity
- 74.0
- Sport
- Swimming
- Career
- 1994–2001
- Country
- 🇺🇸 United States
- Peak
- 92.0
- Dominance
- 88.0
- Statistics
- 88.0
- Honours
- 88.0
- Longevity
- 68.0
- Sport
- Swimming
- Career
- 2015–active
- Country
- 🇮🇹 Italy
- Peak
- 88.0
- Dominance
- 78.0
- Statistics
- 82.0
- Honours
- 84.0
- Longevity
- 80.0
- Sport
- Swimming
- Career
- 1966–1972
- Country
- 🇺🇸 United States
- Peak
- 90.0
- Dominance
- 84.0
- Statistics
- 84.0
- Honours
- 82.0
- Longevity
- 70.0
- Sport
- Swimming
- Career
- 1968–1974
- Country
- 🇮🇹 Italy
- Peak
- 92.0
- Dominance
- 80.0
- Statistics
- 86.0
- Honours
- 82.0
- Longevity
- 66.0
- Sport
- Swimming
- Career
- 1986–1992
- Country
- 🇩🇪 Germany
- Peak
- 88.0
- Dominance
- 78.0
- Statistics
- 86.0
- Honours
- 80.0
- Longevity
- 72.0
- Sport
- Swimming
- Career
- 2006–2018
- Country
- 🇬🇧 United Kingdom
- Peak
- 90.0
- Dominance
- 74.0
- Statistics
- 84.0
- Honours
- 78.0
- Longevity
- 78.0
- Sport
- Swimming
- Career
- 2011–2018
- Country
- 🇦🇺 Australia
- Peak
- 88.0
- Dominance
- 76.0
- Statistics
- 84.0
- Honours
- 80.0
- Longevity
- 74.0
- Sport
- Swimming
- Career
- 2019–active
- Country
- 🇮🇪 Ireland
- Peak
- 92.0
- Dominance
- 82.0
- Statistics
- 84.0
- Honours
- 78.0
- Longevity
- 64.0
- Sport
- Swimming
- Career
- 2013–active
- Country
- 🇦🇹 Austria
- Peak
- 88.0
- Dominance
- 72.0
- Statistics
- 84.0
- Honours
- 74.0
- Longevity
- 78.0
- Sport
- Swimming
- Career
- 1996–2002
- Country
- 🇦🇺 Australia
- Peak
- 82.0
- Dominance
- 70.0
- Statistics
- 80.0
- Honours
- 76.0
- Longevity
- 72.0
| # | Athlete | Sport | Country | Career | GOAT Score |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 6 | Robert Finke | Swimming | 🇺🇸 United States | 2018–— | 90.1 |
| 31 | Vladimir Salnikov | Swimming | 🇷🇺 Russia | 1976–1988 | 87.1 |
| 35 | Rebecca Adlington | Swimming | 🏴 England | 2004–2013 | 87 |
| 41 | Kieren Perkins | Swimming | 🇦🇺 Australia | 1990–2000 | 86.7 |
| 49 | Janet Evans | Swimming | 🇺🇸 United States | 1986–1996 | 86.3 |
| 51 | Grant Hackett | Swimming | 🇦🇺 Australia | 1996–2016 | 86.2 |
| 56 | Murray Rose | Swimming | 🇦🇺 Australia | 1956–1964 | 85.6 |
| 69 | Brooke Bennett | Swimming | 🇺🇸 United States | 1994–2001 | 84.8 |
| 122 | Simona Quadarella | Swimming | 🇮🇹 Italy | 2015–— | 82.2 |
| 124 | Mike Burton | Swimming | 🇺🇸 United States | 1966–1972 | 82 |
| 159 | Novella Calligaris | Swimming | 🇮🇹 Italy | 1968–1974 | 80.9 |
| 166 | Frank Baltrusch | Swimming | 🇩🇪 Germany | 1986–1992 | 80.4 |
| 167 | Jazmin Carlin | Swimming | 🇬🇧 United Kingdom | 2006–2018 | 80.3 |
| 176 | Jessica Ashwood | Swimming | 🇦🇺 Australia | 2011–2018 | 80 |
| 179 | Daniel Wiffen | Swimming | 🇮🇪 Ireland | 2019–— | 79.9 |
| 209 | Felix Auböck | Swimming | 🇦🇹 Austria | 2013–— | 78.6 |
| 252 | Lara Carroll | Swimming | 🇦🇺 Australia | 1996–2002 | 75.5 |
Compare the leaders
Robert Finke vs Vladimir SalnikovRead 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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