Michael Phelps Age, Height, Wife, Net Worth & Biography

Michael Phelps is an American former competitive swimmer who is the most decorated Olympian in history. He won 28 Olympic medals, including 23 golds, across four Olympic Games, and his eight gold medals at the 2008 Beijing Games remain the most ever won by an athlete at a single Olympics. From a hyperactive kid in Baltimore to the greatest swimmer the world has ever seen, his career redefined the limits of his sport. This is his full story.

Quick Facts

Full Name	Michael Fred Phelps II
Age	41 years old
Date of Birth	June 30, 1985
Birthplace	Baltimore, Maryland, USA
Height	6 ft 4 in (193 cm)
Nationality	American
Occupation	Former Competitive Swimmer
Wife	Nicole Johnson Phelps (married 2016)
Children	Boomer, Beckett, Maverick and Nico Phelps
Net Worth	Approx. $100 million (Celebrity Net Worth, 2025)

Who Is Michael Phelps?

Michael Phelps is an American former competitive swimmer. Born on June 30, 1985, in Baltimore, Maryland, he is 41 years old and stands 6 ft 4 in (193 cm) tall. He is married to Nicole Johnson Phelps, a former Miss California USA.

Phelps is the most decorated Olympian of all time. He won 28 Olympic medals across four Games, including 23 gold medals, 3 silver and 2 bronze, and he holds the all-time records for Olympic gold medals (23), Olympic gold medals in individual events (13) and Olympic medals in individual events (16). His eight gold medals at the 2008 Beijing Olympics broke Mark Spitz’s 1972 record of seven first-place finishes at a single Games. His net worth is estimated at approximately $100 million (Celebrity Net Worth, 2025). Like fellow Olympic legends Simone Biles and Serena Williams, Phelps turned dominance into a definition of greatness.

Early Life & Background

Michael Fred Phelps II was born on June 30, 1985, in Baltimore, Maryland, the youngest of three children born to Fred Phelps, a Maryland state trooper, and Deborah Phelps, a school principal. He was diagnosed with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder as a child, and he took up swimming at the age of seven, partly to burn off his endless energy. He joined the North Baltimore Aquatic Club, where he came under the guidance of coach Bob Bowman, who would coach him for his entire career.

At the age of 15, Phelps became the youngest male swimmer to make the U.S. Olympic team in 68 years, competing at the Sydney 2000 Olympics. A year later, at 15, he set his first world record in the 200 metres butterfly, becoming the youngest male swimmer ever to set a world record. His long wingspan, huge feet and extraordinary lung capacity gave him a physical advantage, but it was his training, under Bowman’s famously demanding programme, that turned talent into history.

Career

Phelps won his first Olympic medals at the 2004 Athens Games, taking six gold and two bronze medals, tying the record of eight medals of any colour at a single Games. Four years later, at the 2008 Beijing Olympics, he achieved the greatest single-Games performance in Olympic history, winning eight gold medals in eight events, including the 100 metres butterfly by one hundredth of a second. He broke Mark Spitz’s 36-year-old record of seven gold medals at a single Games, and he was named the most successful athlete of the Games for the second time.

At the 2012 London Olympics, Phelps won four gold and two silver medals, becoming the most decorated Olympian of all time, and then retired. He returned to competition in 2014 and, at the 2016 Rio Olympics, won five gold medals and one silver, making him the most successful athlete of the Games for the fourth Olympics in a row. He retired for good after Rio, having set 39 world records in his career. He later spoke openly about his struggles with depression, becoming a prominent advocate for mental health, and he founded the Michael Phelps Foundation to promote water safety and healthy living.

Off the pool deck, Phelps built a business around his name, including his MP swim brand with Aqua Sphere and endorsement deals with Omega, Under Armour and others. He married Nicole Johnson in 2016, and the couple have four sons: Boomer, Beckett, Maverick and Nico. Like Michael Jordan, Phelps showed that the greatest athletes can turn their careers into lasting legacies that reach far beyond their sport.

Facts About Michael Phelps

• He won 28 Olympic medals, including 23 golds, making him the most decorated Olympian in history, and he holds the records for Olympic gold medals in individual events (13).
• His eight gold medals at the 2008 Beijing Olympics are the most ever won by an athlete at a single Games, breaking Mark Spitz’s 1972 record of seven.
• He set 39 world records in his career, and he was the most successful athlete of the Games at four consecutive Olympics, from 2004 to 2016.
• He was the youngest male swimmer to make the U.S. Olympic team in 68 years, competing at Sydney 2000 at the age of 15, and he set his first world record at 15.
• He has spoken openly about his struggles with depression and is a prominent mental health advocate, and he founded the Michael Phelps Foundation to promote water safety.

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