The Olympics are often seen as the pinnacle of sports and athletics. While most of us root for the underdogs, it’s hard to root against the men and women on this list. They represent a rare level of dedication and perseverance that most of us admire.

Michael Phelps is by far the most-decorated Olympic athlete. With more medals, and more gold medals than any other competitor, Phelps stands alone in the record books. At 15, he was the youngest to break a swimming world record. At one time, he was the oldest to break a record as well.

Here are the top ten Olympic medal winners:

1. Michael Phelps, USA (swimming): 28 medals (23 gold)
2. Larisa Latynina, USSR (gymnastics): 18 medals (9 gold)
3. Marit Bjørgen, Norway (cross-country skiing): 15 medals (8 gold)
4. Nikolai Andrianov, USSR (gymnastics): 15 medals (7 gold)
5. Katie Ledecky, USA (swimming): 14 medals (9 gold)
6. Ole Einar Bjørndalen, Norway (biathlon): 13 medals (8 gold)
7. Boris Shakhlin, USSR (gymnastics): 13 medals (7 gold)
8. Edoardo Mangiarotti, Italy (fencing): 13 medals (6 gold)
9. Takashi Ono, Japan (gymnastics): 13 medals (5 gold)
10. Johannes Høsflot Klæbo, Norway (cross-country skiing): 13 medals (11 gold)