Portrait of Michael Phelps

Birthday profile

Michael Phelps

Michael Phelps, American swimmer

Born
June 30, 1985
Age in 2026
41
Zodiac sign
Cancer
Birth year
1985

About Michael Phelps

Michael Fred Phelps II is an American former competitive swimmer. He won more Olympic medals than any other athlete, a total of 28 medals across four Olympic Games. Phelps also holds the all-time records for Olympic gold medals (23), Olympic gold medals in individual events (13), and Olympic medals in individual events (16). At the 2004 Summer Olympics in Athens, Phelps tied the record of eight medals of any color at a single Games, held by gymnast Alexander Dityatin, by winning six gold and two bronze medals. Four years later, when he won eight gold medals at the 2008 Beijing Games, he broke fellow American swimmer Mark Spitz's 1972 record of seven first-place finishes at any single Olympic Games. At the 2012 Summer Olympics in London, Phelps won four gold and two silver medals, and at the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio de Janeiro, he won five gold medals and one silver. This made him the most successful athlete of the Games for the fourth Olympics in a row.

Biography source: Wikipedia. The profile adds birthday-specific historical context from the Celebs Birthday Today editorial database.

Michael Phelps timeline

  1. At the 2004 Summer Olympics in Athens, Phelps tied the record of eight medals of any color at a single Games, held by gymnast Alexander Dityatin, by winning six gold and two bronze medals.
  2. Four years later, when he won eight gold medals at the 2008 Beijing Games, he broke fellow American swimmer Mark Spitz's 1972 record of seven first-place finishes at any single Olympic Games.
  3. At the 2012 Summer Olympics in London, Phelps won four gold and two silver medals, and at the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio de Janeiro, he won five gold medals and one silver.

The world when Michael Phelps was born

Michael Phelps was born in 1985. The year snapshot below places that birthday in its cultural and historical setting: the music and films people were following, the headlines shaping public life, and the everyday prices families encountered.

Culture in 1985

  • #1 song"We Are the World" – USA for Africa
  • Top movieOut of Africa
  • Top TV showThe Cosby Show
  • Best-selling bookThe Handmaid's Tale – Margaret Atwood

Headlines and milestones

  • Major sports momentMichael Jordan named NBA Rookie of the Year
  • Top headlineLive Aid concert raises awareness for African famine
  • Technology milestoneNintendo NES released in the US
  • Defining fadNintendo NES
  • Notable inventionNintendo Entertainment System (NES) launches in US
  • World population4.85 billion

United States snapshot

  • U.S. leaderRonald Reagan
  • Sports championKansas City Royals (World Series)
  • Also wonLos Angeles Lakers (NBA)
  • U.S. population237.9M

1985 versus 2026

These figures put everyday life in Michael Phelps's birth year beside the site's latest United States snapshot.

Measure19852026
Gas$1.12$3.45/gal
Average home$75,500$435,000
Average income$27,735$67,500
Minimum wage$3.35$7.25/hr (federal)
Movie ticket$3.55$11.95
Postage stamp$0.22$0.73
Population237.9M341 million

Sources and editorial standards

This profile combines a biographical source with structured birthday and historical context. Sources recorded for this profile: Wikipedia, International Olympic Committee, Olympedia. See our editorial policy for sourcing, corrections, and review standards.

Read the source biography on Wikipedia. Wikipedia text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License.