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The Most Famous

SWIMMERS from United Kingdom

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This page contains a list of the greatest British Swimmers. The pantheon dataset contains 392 Swimmers, 26 of which were born in United Kingdom. This makes United Kingdom the birth place of the 7th most number of Swimmers behind Japan and Hungary.

Top 10

The following people are considered by Pantheon to be the top 10 most legendary British Swimmers of all time. This list of famous British Swimmers is sorted by HPI (Historical Popularity Index), a metric that aggregates information on a biography’s online popularity. Visit the rankings page to view the entire list of British Swimmers.

Photo of John Arthur Jarvis

1. John Arthur Jarvis (1872 - 1933)

With an HPI of 47.93, John Arthur Jarvis is the most famous British Swimmer.  His biography has been translated into 19 different languages on wikipedia.

John Arthur Jarvis (24 February 1872 – 9 May 1933) was an English competitive swimmer who represented Great Britain in three Olympic Games, and was a well-known amateur athlete of the late 19th century and early 20th century. He participated in Swimming at the 1900 Summer Olympics in Paris and won two gold medals in the 1000-metre and the 4000-metre freestyle events. He also won a gold medal in the water polo tournament.Jarvis was born in Leicester. He was inducted into the International Swimming Hall of Fame as an "Honor Swimmer" in 1968.

Photo of Henry Taylor

2. Henry Taylor (1885 - 1951)

With an HPI of 46.70, Henry Taylor is the 2nd most famous British Swimmer.  His biography has been translated into 17 different languages.

Henry Taylor (17 March 1885 – 28 February 1951) was an English competitive swimmer who represented Great Britain in four Summer Olympics between 1906 and 1920. Taylor served in the Royal Navy during the First World War, and continued to swim competitively until 1926. His fortunes declined after he retired and he died penniless. His record of three gold medals at one Olympic Games – the most by any Briton – stood for 100 years until it was equaled by cyclist Chris Hoy in 2008. Tying the medal count of American Mel Sheppard, he was the most successful athlete at the 1908 Olympics.

Photo of Murray Rose

3. Murray Rose (1939 - 2012)

With an HPI of 43.29, Murray Rose is the 3rd most famous British Swimmer.  His biography has been translated into 24 different languages.

Iain Murray Rose, (6 January 1939 – 15 April 2012) was an Australian swimmer, actor, sports commentator and marketing executive. He was a six-time Olympic medalist (four gold, one silver, one bronze), and at one time held the world records in the 400-metre, 800-metre, and 1500-metre freestyle (long course). He made his Olympic debut at the 1956 Summer Olympics as a 17-year-old and won three Olympic medals, all gold. Four years later, as a 21-year-old, he won three Olympic medals (one gold, one silver, one bronze) at the 1960 Summer Olympics.

Photo of Frederick Holman

4. Frederick Holman (1885 - 1913)

With an HPI of 41.59, Frederick Holman is the 4th most famous British Swimmer.  His biography has been translated into 17 different languages.

Frederick Holman (9 February 1883 – 23 January 1913) was an English competitive swimmer from Dawlish, Devon, England. Holman represented Great Britain at the 1908 Summer Olympics in London, where he won the gold medal in the men's 200-metre breaststroke event and did not compete in any other events.He died of typhoid fever in Exeter in January 1913 aged 29. He was married but had no children. Holman is an "Honor Swimmer" member of the International Swimming Hall of Fame.

Photo of Judy Grinham

5. Judy Grinham (1939 - )

With an HPI of 31.74, Judy Grinham is the 5th most famous British Swimmer.  Her biography has been translated into 15 different languages.

Judith Brenda Grinham (born 5 March 1939), also known by her married name Judith Roe or also by her former married name Judith Rowley, is an English former competitive swimmer who represented Great Britain in the Olympics and European championships, and competed for England in the Commonwealth Games. Grinham is an Olympic gold medallist, Commonwealth and European champion, and former world record-holder. In 1956 and 1958 she was chosen as Great Britain's Sportswoman of the Year. In 1958 she became the first woman in any sport to hold/win Olympic, European and Commonwealth titles.

Photo of Tom Dean

6. Tom Dean (2000 - )

With an HPI of 29.27, Tom Dean is the 6th most famous British Swimmer.  His biography has been translated into 22 different languages.

Thomas William Darnton Dean (born 2 May 2000) is a British competitive freestyle swimmer. He is a double Olympic gold medalist, winning gold individually in 200 metre freestyle and as part of a team in 4 × 200 m freestyle relay at the 2020 Summer Olympics.He has represented Great Britain at the European Junior Championships and the European Championships. He also competed at the 2020 European Championships where he won three gold and two silver medals in the team events and one individual bronze in 200m freestyle. Dean has won relay gold at all four major events available to him - at World Championships, Olympic Games and European Championships and, for England, at Commonwealth Games.

Photo of Spyridon Gianniotis

7. Spyridon Gianniotis (1980 - )

With an HPI of 25.99, Spyridon Gianniotis is the 7th most famous British Swimmer.  His biography has been translated into 16 different languages.

Spyridon "Spyros" Gianniotis (Greek: Σπυρίδων "Σπύρος" Γιαννιώτης; born 19 February 1980) is a Greek competitive swimmer who specialises in long-distance and open-water freestyle events. He is an Olympic silver medalist, two-time World Champion, World Cup gold medalist, and two-time European Champion. A five-time Olympian, Gianniotis has won a total of 15 medals in major international long-course competition, totalling 5 gold, 5 silver, and 5 bronze spanning the Olympics, the World Championships, the World Cup and the European Championships. In 2011 he won the World Open Water Swimmer of the Year award, becoming the first and only Greek swimmer to earn that distinction. He was named the Greek Male Athlete of the Year, for the years 2011, 2012, and 2013. He won the silver medal at the 2016 Olympic Games in Rio at the 10 km marathon swim. Initially, Gianniotis was given as the gold medalist as he appeared to cross the finish line first, but the Dutchman Ferry Weertman touched the timing pad before him. After 15 minutes of deliberations by the judges and the use of photo finish, Weertman was awarded the gold medal and Gianniotis the silver, despite the fact that both were credited with the same time: 1 hour, 52 minutes, 59.8 seconds (1:52:59.8). Gianniotis won the silver medal at the age of 36, being the oldest competitor in the event.

Photo of Adam Peaty

8. Adam Peaty (1994 - )

With an HPI of 23.56, Adam Peaty is the 8th most famous British Swimmer.  His biography has been translated into 33 different languages.

Adam George Peaty (born 28 December 1994) is an English competitive swimmer who specialises in the breaststroke. He won the gold medal in the 100 metre breaststroke at the 2016 Summer Olympics, the first by a male British swimmer in 24 years, and retained the title at the 2020 Summer Olympics in 2021, the first British swimmer ever to retain an Olympic title. He is also an eight-time World Champion, a sixteen-time European Champion and a four-time Commonwealth Champion. According to FINA itself, Peaty is widely regarded as the dominant breaststroke swimmer of his era, and the most dominant sprint breaststroke swimmer of all time.Peaty is the holder of the world record in 50 metre and 100 metre breaststroke events. He has broken world records 14 times, becoming the first man to swim under 26 seconds for the 50 metre breaststroke and the first to swim the 100 metre breaststroke under both 58 and 57 seconds. He is the first swimmer ever to win both sprint breaststroke events at the same World championships, and the most successful British swimmer in a single World Championships. Peaty is one of only six British swimmers, with David Wilkie, Rebecca Adlington, James Guy, Duncan Scott, and Tom Dean to have won gold medals at all four major international events (Olympic, World, European and Commonwealth Games), and with David Wilkie the only swimmers to hold all four major gold medals in the same single event at the same time, a feat he completed in winning the 100 metre breaststroke at the 2016 Olympics, and which he uniquely maintained through the 2020 Olympics. Peaty is a six-time European swimmer of the year which he has won consecutively from 2014 to 2019, and also a two-time World swimmer of the year in 2015 and 2018.

Photo of Duncan Goodhew

9. Duncan Goodhew (1957 - )

With an HPI of 22.66, Duncan Goodhew is the 9th most famous British Swimmer.  His biography has been translated into 15 different languages.

Duncan Alexander Goodhew, (born 27 May 1957) is an English former competitive swimmer. After swimming competitively in America as a collegian at North Carolina State University, he was an Olympic swimmer for Great Britain and won Olympic gold and bronze medals at the 1980 Summer Olympics in Moscow. He also swam at the 1976 Summer Olympics.

Photo of Duncan Scott

10. Duncan Scott (1997 - )

With an HPI of 18.92, Duncan Scott is the 10th most famous British Swimmer.  Her biography has been translated into 23 different languages.

Duncan William MacNaughton Scott (born 6 May 1997) is a Scottish swimmer representing Great Britain at the FINA World Aquatics Championships, LEN European Aquatics Championships, European Games and the Olympic Games, and Scotland at the Commonwealth Games. Scott made history after winning four medals - more than any other British athlete at a single Olympic Games - in Tokyo 2020, simultaneously becoming Great Britain's most decorated swimmer in Olympic history.An all-rounder in the pool, Scott has swum internationally in 100 and 200 metres freestyle and butterfly, and 200 metres individual medley. He has won gold at the Olympics, three golds at the World Championships in 4 x 200 metre freestyle relay, a World Championship gold in the men's 4 x 100 metre medley relay, as well as silvers at the World Championships and Olympics in freestyle and medley relay. Individually, Scott was the 100 metre freestyle champion at the 2015 European Games and 2018 Commonwealth Games, and the 200 metre freestyle champion at the same European Games and the 2018 European Aquatics Championships. He is an Olympic silver medalist in the individual 200 metres freestyle, and a World silver medalist in the 200 metres individual medley. Winning three gold medals in the (100 m and 200 m freestyle, and 4 × 100 m freestyle relay) at the 2015 European Games, he was the most successful British athlete at the Games. A month later, he formed part of the Great Britain squad that won the gold medal at the 2015 World Aquatics Championships in the men's 4 x 200 metre freestyle relay as the 4th leg swimmer in the heat. In 2016, he was a member of the Great Britain team that won silver in the final of the same event at the Olympic Games as well as the men's 4 x 100 metre medley relay. The same team also won the 4 x 100 metre medley relay silver in the 2017 World Championships. A noted relay swimmer, Scott broke the individual British 200 metre freestyle record leading off in the men's 4 x 200 metre relay, before anchoring the team that won gold in 4 x 100 metre medley relay at the 2019 World Championships.

Pantheon has 26 people classified as swimmers born between 1872 and 2002. Of these 26, 22 (84.62%) of them are still alive today. The most famous living swimmers include Judy Grinham, Tom Dean, and Spyridon Gianniotis. The most famous deceased swimmers include John Arthur Jarvis, Henry Taylor, and Murray Rose. As of April 2022, 11 new swimmers have been added to Pantheon including Judy Grinham, Tom Dean, and Duncan Goodhew.

Living Swimmers

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Deceased Swimmers

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Newly Added Swimmers (2022)

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Which Swimmers were alive at the same time? This visualization shows the lifespans of the 4 most globally memorable Swimmers since 1700.