Ian Thorpe

Australia's Ian Thorpe, nicknamed the "Thorpedo," won 5 Olympic gold medals at the 2000 Sydney and 2004 Athens Games and set 13 individual long-course world records. His signature event was the 400m freestyle, which he dominated with a then-impossible long-body technique. Thorpe retired at 24 and was named Australian of the Year in 2002. He remains one of the most technically innovative freestyle swimmers in the sport's history.