The Rio Olympics will always be remembered for being the swansong of two of the greatest stars the sports world has ever seen – Michael Phelps and Usain Bolt. Record breakers, show-stealers, megastars – these two titans have never failed to capture the world’s imagination. Their dazzling performances lit up the last four Olympics and there will be quite a void now that they have bid adieu to the Games.
Even in their last appearances, both Phelps and Bolt gave the world one last chance to appreciate and savour their greatness. While the American swimmer clinched five gold medals and one silver, the Jamaican sprinting dynamo made it a memorable farewell with three gold medals that completed his much-coveted ‘Triple-triple’ bid.
For years, we have revelled in their records and marvelled at their feats. For years, we have stayed up at night to catch a glimpse of these two legends. Now that both have sealed their places in history, a question lingers on sports fans’ lips – who is the greater Olympian?
Of course, it goes without saying that Phelps and Bolt are widely considered to be the two greatest Olympians of all time. So when we try to determine which of them is greater, we are essentially trying to answer the question about who the greatest Olympian of all time is.
Phelps and Bolt might be a part of two completely different sports, but it is always fun to dissect and analyse the careers of the great ones just for the sake of a debate. Who wins this race? Here are a few comparison points:
Number of medals won
Phelps
This is perhaps the most well-known stat in the Olympics world, and also the easiest to compare. Phelps has famously won 28 medals, out of which 23 are gold, which automatically puts him in rarefied air.
Bolt
Bolt’s medal tally is also pretty well-known, but it’s not as widely celebrated as that of Phelps – for the simple reason that it’s less than half in number. The Jamaican has won 9 medals at the Olympics – all of them gold – but that tally pales significantly in comparison to the American.
Verdict: Phelps
Longevity
For both Phelps and Bolt, starting out early as precocious teenagers and performing at their peak even at the age of 30 has helped them in amassing a staggering number of Olympic medals. Selfless dedication to their respective sports, improvised modern training methods and clean drug-free records have been instrumental in their exceptional Olympic longevity.
Phelps – 5 Olympics
When pitted against each other in terms of their longevity, it is undoubtedly the swimmer who comes out on top. The Baltimore Bullet had his first taste of Olympic swimming at the age of 15 in Sydney in 2000. His qualification that year made him the youngest male swimmer to get a berth in the Olympic swim team in 68 years.
In his very first appearance at the Games, the prodigious talent made it to the final of the 200m butterfly and finished fifth.
Phelps swam in the subsequent four Olympics, collecting a total of 28 medals. After London in 2012 a burnt-out Phelps decided to retire, only to reverse his decision as he wanted to finish his career on his own terms. It was the first time ever that any male American swimmer had participated in five Olympics.
At Rio, he won the 200m individual medley for the fourth consecutive time, which levelled him with his fellow countrymen Al Oerter and Carl Lewis who also clinched the gold in four straight Games – in discus and long jump respectively. That further emphasizes Phelps’ supreme fitness and ability to continue in the top tier for as long as 12 years.
Bolt – 4 Olympics
The beginning of Usain Bolt’s Olympic career was not as bright as Phelps’. His debut at the Games was in 2004 when he was 18 years old, but that was a disappointment as he could only manage a fifth-place finish in the 200m heat.
His next three Olympics were of course what made him the Usain Bolt that we know today, delivering nine gold medals – three in each.
Verdict: Phelps
Olympic success rate
Phelps
No one comes close to Phelps in the number of medals won at the Olympics. The 31-year-old has a total of 28 medals of which as many as 23 are gold – an all-time record. The next best on the list of most successful Olympians is Soviet gymnast Larisa Latynina with just 18 medals – 10 less than the American.
How big Phelps’ haul of 23 gold medals is can be ascertained from the fact that the next five names on the list – Latynina, Paavo Nurmi, Mark Spitz, Carl Lewis and Usain Bolt – all have only 9 golds each. Phelps’ haul of eight gold medals at Beijing saw him break swimmer Mark Spitz’s record of seven gold medals won in a single Olympic Games.
With such glorious accomplishments, it’s very difficult to find fault with the swimmer’s career. However, having participated in more Olympics finals than the Jamaican – 30 to be precise – Phelps’ success rate in Olympic finals is understandably not as flawless as Bolt’s.
Out of those 30, he claimed gold in 23 races, making his success rate 76.67%. Only two races – the 400m individual medley in 2012 and the 200m butterfly in 2000 – could not fetch him any medal as he finished fourth and fifth in them respectively.
Bolt
‘Thunderbolt’ cruised to nine Olympic gold medals that saw him completing the unprecedented ‘Triple-triple’ at Rio with his sweep of the 100m, 200m and the 4x100m races in three consecutive Olympics. Earlier, when he had achieved the 100m-200m double for the second time at the London Games, Bolt became the first man to do so, underlining his entry into the pantheon of great sprinters.
What is most impressive is Bolt’s flawless conversion rate after reaching an Olympic final. From 9 such finals, he has 9 gold medals, thus maintaining a fantastic 100% record.
Even though Phelps owns the world record in the number of medals, Bolt’s immaculate success rate automatically pushes him up over the swimming icon.
Verdict: Bolt
World Records
Phelps
Phelps has set a humongous 39 world records all through his career, eclipsing fellow American Mark Spitz’s record of 33 world records. That is the highest number of records set by any swimmer recognized by the swimming world body FINA.
Of the 39, 29 have come in individual races while the rest were achieved in relays. Even after drawing an end to his illustrious Olympic career, the butterfly specialist is still the holder of the world record in the 100m fly, 200m fly and the 400m individual medley.
Here is a summary of Phelps’ world record times:
100m butterfly – 49.82 seconds (next fastest is 50.01)
200m butterfly – 1:51.51 (next fastest by anyone not named Michael Phelps is 1:55.18)
400m individual medley – 4:03.84 (next fastest by anyone not named Michael Phelps is 4:11.76)
Bolt
Bolt has set eight world records over the 100m, 200m and 4x100m relay. His impeccable timing of 9.58 seconds in the 100m, as well as 19.19 seconds in 200m, are both likely to stand the test of time. Aptly called ‘Lightning Bolt’, he is the first man in history to simultaneously hold both the 100m and the 200m world records since it became mandatory to use fully automatic time.
How astounding are Bolt’s world records? Not even the 29-year-old himself has been able to come close to his records, registering just 9.81s and 19.78s during his gold medal winning-run in 100m and 200m respectively at Rio just a few days back.
A summary of Bolt’s world records:
100m – 9.58 (next fastest by anyone not named Usain Bolt is 9.74)
200m – 19.19 (next fastest by anyone not named Usain Bolt is 19.32)
Verdict: Bolt, for the sheer unlikelihood of his records being broken anytime soon
Physical advantages & disadvantages
Phelps
Phelps’ unique body structure aids him a lot in being an excellent swimmer. His long and narrow torso provides low drag, besides which his 201cm long arms act as propulsive paddles. His shorter legs enhance his speed and his size-14 feet give him the effect of flippers. Thus his physique is naturally suited for such remarkable speeds in water.
Bolt
Bolt’s phenomenal achievements busted the myth that sprints are only suited to stocky athletes. Thick and powerful thighs are the traditional requisites to have good results in sprinting, and Bolt’s lanky frame of 6’5’’ does not allow for a rapid burst of speed at the start.
Despite that, the way he manages to overpower everybody is truly astonishing to watch. Scientists have researched on it and have found that the main reason behind it is ‘’extraordinary large stride length”, as revealed by Prof John Barrow of the Cambridge University.
“He has lots of fast twitch muscle fibres that can respond quickly, which coupled with his vast stride is what gives him such an extraordinary fast time,” said Barrow, as reported by BBC News.
Bolt wins this battle hands down given how he has changed a long-established fact and people’s notion regarding sprinting.
Verdict: Bolt
Personality
There’s a stark contrast in their personalities – one is a picture of steely focus while the other struts across the stadium in his patented laid-back manner. Perhaps personality traits do not add much to their individual greatness, but it has definitely helped in their popularity all over the world.
Phelps and the rigid focus
Phelps likes to remain in his zone as he bolsters his mental strength ahead of crucial races. That is not a secret anymore after pictures of the American’s resolute face, popularized as the ‘death stare’ before his 200m butterfly final at Rio, started doing the rounds. Numerous memes were immediately made on it and for a while, it became a top worldwide trend on Twitter.
Three-time Olympic gold medallist Natalie Coughlin of the USA, who has known Phelps since their early days, was not surprised that the legend won the race that night. “We saw that with how enraged he was in the ready room. As soon as that happened, I was like, he’s going to win – there’s no doubt in my mind that he’s going to win that race,” the 33-year-old told the Daily Mail while talking about his mental toughness.
Bolt – the people’s champion
Bolt is the exact opposite in this regard. He is the ultimate showman, the superstar extraordinaire. When Bolt takes the centre stage, you can’t do anything but watch and gape in awe. He makes it look so effortless, that you cannot believe it is actually real!
The most complete entertainer that there ever was in the sports world, the recently-turned 30-year-old can own any crowd anytime with his nonchalant, easy-going manner. The swagger that he has before and after a race is incomparable.
He can even laugh and smile while running, which was once again evident as he flashed his teeth to the cameramen while dashing to the gold medal during the 100m race in Rio. And after a win if Bolt does not do his trademark ‘To Di World’ celebratory pose, then the fun remains incomplete.
While winning his 200m semi-final at Rio, he and second-placed Andre De Grasse of Canada grinned at each other near the finish line as if that was the coolest thing to do. And all the time, the Jamaican never loses sight of his goal – the gold medal. You are left wondering each time, ‘How does he do it?’
There is probably nothing in this world that Usain Bolt cannot do. His carefree approach undoubtedly makes him a people’s champion and a more attractive personality for anyone to follow.
Verdict: Cannot be quantified
So now the big question: who is greater?
“I am trying to be one of the greatest. Be among Ali and Pele,” Bolt had declared after his 200m victory at the 2016 Games.
Was he right in asserting his supremacy?
Even though records suggest that Phelps and Bolt are both the best in their respective fields, Bolt’s accomplishments can be rated higher based pm the above analysis.
This, in no way, belittles the champion swimmer that Phelps is. It has not been an easy ride for the American, who has had to deal with his parents’ divorce and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) at an early age. Post the London Games, it had been an even harder time for him personally, but he bounced back in style from depression, drinking and a well-publicized arrest for drunken-driving.
But for Bolt, the challenges were even bigger. Athletics required a larger-than-life hero who could lift the sport from the doping demon that had devoured it for quite some time. A superstar whose every move would make the viewers remain glued to the screen was desperately needed. Usain Bolt was that answer, the saviour for the entire world of track and field sports.
Today, even a little kid recognizes the Jamaican. And Bolt achieved it through his sheer ambition, determination and an amazingly affable nature that helped him to soar through the popularity charts.
When Bolt emerged, Jamaica was hardly the sprinting superpower that it is now. Former Olympic medallist Merlene Ottey and former world record holder Asafa Powell were the biggest names at that time. But the lanky Jamaican made a revolution of sorts and almost single-handedly put his country on the athletics map.
Where Bolt scores over Phelps is his ability to make use of the limited number of chances that he got compared to the American. Every elite sprinter more or less gets three opportunities at the Games, and Bolt grabbed each one of them to increase his gold tally.
Whereas being a swimmer, Phelps had the good fortune of participating in around 6-8 races per Olympics that automatically multiplied his medal chances. Considering the percentage of wins within their own sport, Bolt is the undisputed winner.
Also, the simple fact that the Jamaican is unbeaten at the Olympics since 2004 automatically tilts the balance in his favour.
Perhaps nobody but Bolt himself says it the best –
“I’ve just proven to the world that you can do it clean, with hard work and determination. I’ve made the sport exciting, made people want to watch the sport. I’ve just put the sport on a different level and put on it a different pedestal.”
What more does one need to call an athlete the ‘greatest’?
