Top 10 Female Athletes Who Broke World Records

#10: Serena Williams

After making her professional debut in 1995, it took until 1999 for Williams to win her first singles title, setting the path for her legendary career that lasted until 2022. During that time, she picked up 73 titles, including a record-breaking 23 Grand Slams. In 2012 alone, after winning two golds at the Summer Olympics, Williams became the first tennis player, male or female, to complete both singles and doubles career Golden Slams. Her legacy also had her marked as the womens world number one player for a record-breaking 186 weeks, a feat she shares with the legendary Steffi Graf. Williams has also played and won the most singles matches since the Open Era began in 1968, with 423 and 367, respectively.

#9: Mildred "Babe" Didrikson Zaharias

We may never see a more perfect and adaptable athlete than Zaharias. No matter what sport she played, she dominated. In baseball, she earned the world record for the longest throw by a woman at 90.2 meters in 1931, which still stands today. At the 1932 Summer Olympics, she collected two golds in 80-meter hurdles and javelin throw, plus a silver in high jump. Those successes led to Zaharias being labeled the first lesbian gold medalist. In 1935, Zaharias made the smooth transition to golf. Decades later, she still holds the record for the fastest time to reach 10, 20, and 30 LPGA wins as she collected 10 major championships.

#8: Jacqueline Joyner-Kersee

The heptathlon is a grueling event. The athlete has to compete in 7 events: the 100-meter hurdles, high jump, shot put, 200 meters, long jump, javelin throw, and 800 meters. Yet in its history, one woman has stood tall as its record holder, Joyner-Kersee. At the 1988 Summer Olympics, she collected a gold medal in the event with an astonishing 7291 points. No one has come close to it since, especially as she won gold again at the 1992 event. At the 1988 Olympics, Joyner-Kersee also competed in the long jump, grabbing another gold. The year before, shed set the world record in that event at 7.45 meters, which was beaten by Galina Chistyakova in 1988.

#7: Nadia Comneci

Coming into the 1976 Summer Olympics as a teenager, Comneci probably wasnt expecting to change Olympic gymnastics forever, but she did. In addition to collecting three individual golds and one bronze, plus one team silver, she became the first gymnast to achieve a perfect 10 score on the uneven bars, which was thought to be impossible. She repeated this remarkable feat on the balance beam, too. This made Comneci the youngest Olympic all-around gymnastic champion, male or female, at 14 years, 249 days old. Since the age restriction was increased to 16 in 1997, this record will never be beaten. As well as winning two golds and two silvers at the 1980 Olympics, Comneci also had another perfect 10 on the uneven bars.

#6: Ireen Wüst

In the world of Olympic speed skating, theres no bigger talent than Wüst. The Dutch athlete sits distantly atop the sport, with the most medals among both men and women at 13. This includes six golds, five silvers, and two bronzes. This achievement has made Wüst the third most decorated out of all Olympic Winter athletes. But even more impressively, after winning gold in the 1500 meters at the 2022 Winter Olympics, she became the first athlete, male or female, to win five consecutive golds in individual sports. After achieving this phenomenal feat, Wüst hung up her skates in 2022 as she began mentoring young athletes.

#5: Letesenbet Gidey

Considering Gidey was expelled from her school in Ethiopia for refusing to run during physical education, probably not many people thought shed create a legacy from long-distance running. But she did, and then some. In 2020, Gidey opened up her world record account with the fastest time in the 5000 meters. Gidey collected another world record with the quickest time in the 10,000 meter trials at the Summer Olympics in 2021, shortly before taking bronze in the same event. Months later, she added another one with the fastest time in a half-marathon. This incredible accomplishment made Gidey the first athlete, male or female, to hold world records in all three events at the same time!

#4: Yulimar Rojas

If you want the pinnacle athlete for the triple jump, you want Rojas. The Venezuelan jumper is one of the best ever in the sport. After all, Rojas has taken gold in many major competitions, sometimes several times over! On top of this, she has smashed many records. At the 2020 Summer Olympics, Rojas broke the longest triple jump world record, which had stood for nearly 26 years! She managed to hit 15.67 meters, destroying Inessa Kravetss 15.50-meter jump in 1995. But Rojas wasnt done. In 2022, she beat her own record with a distance of 15.74 meters!

#3: Florence Griffith Joyner

Best known as Flo-Jo, Griffith Joyner became a machine leading into the 1988 Summer Olympics after taking one silver in 1984. During the trials for the 100 meters, she broke the world record, clocking in at 10.49 seconds. Then Griffith Joyner stunned everyone with another smashed record by completing the 200 meters at 21.56 seconds during the Olympic semifinals. On the same day, for the final, she broke it again in 21.34 seconds! These achievements, plus getting another gold at the womens 4 by 100 meters relay, solidified Griffith Joyner as a generational sprinter. While her 100-meter achievement does have some controversy due to wind strength, both records still stand today.

#2: Simone Biles

Shes the biggest name on Team USA for a reason. Biles is one of the greatest gymnasts to grace the sport. She currently sits third in the Olympics all-time womens gymnastics medal table with 11. And her dominance in the World Artistic Gymnastics Championships is outlandish. She leads all men and women with the most medals at 30, and she did the incredible in 2023, winning the individual all-around title for the sixth time. This was already an unprecedented achievement, and it pushed her to be the most decorated gymnast in history with 34 world titles. Since then, she added more gold at the 2024 Summer Olympics, cementing her legendary place even more.

Before we unveil our top pick, here are a few honorable mentions.

Trischa Zorn

Shes the All-Time Paralympics Medal Leader with 55, More Than Double Her Nearest Rival

Marta

The Brazilian Footballer Has Fired in 17 Goals at World Cups, the Most Among Men or Women

Caitlin Clark

Already a Basketball Icon at Her Age, Clark Is the NCAA Division I All-Time Leading Scorer

Sarah Storey

On Top of Smashing Records, Storey Collected 5 Paralympics Gold Medals Before Turning 19

#1: Katie Ledecky

Shes the most decorated female Olympic swimmer with 14 medals. Thats good for second place in the all-time Olympic womens charts and fifth in the all-time charts in both male and female Olympic events. Ledecky is a phenom in the water. In 2023, at the World Aquatics Championship, she became the first swimmer, male or female, to win six consecutive career individual gold medals in the same event. Throughout her career, Ledecky has destroyed records in the 400, 800, and 1500-meter freestyle. Shes broken world records 17 times, the most recent being her own record in the 800-meter freestyle at the TYR Pro Swim Series in May 2025.

Which record-breaking athlete inspires you? Let us know below!