Which swimmer holds the record for most gold medals in a single Olympics?

Michael Phelps holds the record for the most gold medals won by a swimmer in a single Olympics, taking eight at the 2008 Beijing Games. His total surpassed Mark Spitz’s long-standing record of seven golds at the 1972 Munich Olympics.

Phelps won in the 200-meter freestyle, 100-meter butterfly, 200-meter butterfly, 200-meter individual medley and 400-meter individual medley. He also helped the United States win four relay titles: the 4×100-meter freestyle, 4×200-meter freestyle, 4×100-meter medley and 4×100-meter medley events. His Beijing campaign therefore combined individual races with relay success.

The narrow margin in the 100-meter butterfly made the achievement especially famous: Phelps touched first by one-hundredth of a second. People sometimes confuse this record with an athlete’s total Olympic gold-medal haul. Phelps also holds the overall Olympic gold record, with 23, but the single-Games mark specifically refers to his eight victories in Beijing.