Michael Phelps, born on June 30, 1985 in Baltimore, Maryland, is an American swimmer who has won 21 Olympic medals—six gold and two bronze at Athens in 2004, eight gold at Beijing in 2008, and three gold and two silver at London in 2012. Phelps holds the record for most gold medals won in a single Olympics (Beijing, 2008), and set a new record for most Olympic medals in 2012, beating gymnast Larisa Latynina's prior record of 18.
