- Sport
- Swimming
- Career
- 2008–2024
- Country
- 🇦🇺 Australia
- Peak
- 94.0
- Dominance
- 86.0
- Statistics
- 92.0
- Honours
- 90.0
- Longevity
- 90.0
GOAT Rank · 12
Greatest Swimming Freestyle sprint 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
- 2007–2021
- Country
- 🇺🇸 United States
- Peak
- 92.0
- Dominance
- 84.0
- Statistics
- 90.0
- Honours
- 88.0
- Longevity
- 84.0
- Sport
- Swimming
- Career
- 1995–2008
- Country
- 🇳🇱 Netherlands
- Peak
- 90.0
- Dominance
- 84.0
- Statistics
- 86.0
- Honours
- 84.0
- Longevity
- 78.0
- Sport
- Swimming
- Career
- 2006–2016
- Country
- 🇧🇷 Brazil
- Peak
- 90.0
- Dominance
- 82.0
- Statistics
- 86.0
- Honours
- 80.0
- Longevity
- 70.0
- Sport
- Swimming
- Career
- 2000–2016
- Country
- 🇫🇷 France
- Peak
- 90.0
- Dominance
- 76.0
- Statistics
- 82.0
- Honours
- 78.0
- Longevity
- 80.0
- Sport
- Swimming
- Career
- 1954–1960
- Country
- 🇦🇺 Australia
- Peak
- 92.0
- Dominance
- 80.0
- Statistics
- 80.0
- Honours
- 82.0
- Longevity
- 62.0
- Sport
- Swimming
- Career
- 1955–1960
- Country
- 🇦🇺 Australia
- Peak
- 90.0
- Dominance
- 78.0
- Statistics
- 78.0
- Honours
- 82.0
- Longevity
- 64.0
- Sport
- Swimming
- Career
- 2006–2016
- Country
- 🇺🇸 United States
- Peak
- 86.0
- Dominance
- 72.0
- Statistics
- 78.0
- Honours
- 80.0
- Longevity
- 76.0
- Sport
- Swimming
- Career
- 2018–active
- Country
- 🇺🇦 Ukraine
- Peak
- 84.0
- Dominance
- 72.0
- Statistics
- 78.0
- Honours
- 76.0
- Longevity
- 66.0
- Sport
- Swimming
- Career
- 1980–1986
- Country
- 🇺🇸 United States
- Peak
- 84.0
- Dominance
- 68.0
- Statistics
- 72.0
- Honours
- 76.0
- Longevity
- 64.0
- Sport
- Swimming
- Career
- 1973–1978
- Country
- 🇺🇸 United States
- Peak
- 84.0
- Dominance
- 68.0
- Statistics
- 72.0
- Honours
- 72.0
- Longevity
- 62.0
- Sport
- Swimming
- Career
- 2007–2016
- Country
- 🇦🇺 Australia
- Peak
- 78.0
- Dominance
- 64.0
- Statistics
- 78.0
- Honours
- 68.0
- Longevity
- 70.0
| # | Athlete | Sport | Country | Career | GOAT Score |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 5 | Cate Campbell | Swimming | 🇦🇺 Australia | 2008–2024 | 90.1 |
| 28 | Nathan Adrian | Swimming | 🇺🇸 United States | 2007–2021 | 87.3 |
| 74 | Pieter van den Hoogenband | Swimming | 🇳🇱 Netherlands | 1995–2008 | 84.3 |
| 142 | César Cielo | Swimming | 🇧🇷 Brazil | 2006–2016 | 81.4 |
| 158 | Frédérick Bousquet | Swimming | 🇫🇷 France | 2000–2016 | 80.9 |
| 195 | Jon Henricks | Swimming | 🇦🇺 Australia | 1954–1960 | 79.2 |
| 213 | John Devitt | Swimming | 🇦🇺 Australia | 1955–1960 | 78.4 |
| 223 | Cullen Jones | Swimming | 🇺🇸 United States | 2006–2016 | 78.1 |
| 255 | Vladyslav Bukhov | Swimming | 🇺🇦 Ukraine | 2018–— | 74.9 |
| 262 | Chris Cavanaugh | Swimming | 🇺🇸 United States | 1980–1986 | 72.6 |
| 264 | Jack Babashoff | Swimming | 🇺🇸 United States | 1973–1978 | 71.4 |
| 265 | Matthew Abood | Swimming | 🇦🇺 Australia | 2007–2016 | 70.9 |
Compare the leaders
Cate Campbell vs Nathan AdrianRead 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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