who won the most gold medals in 2008 olympics

While no single athlete took home the most gold medals by country, swimmer Michael Phelps achieved the most individual success in the 2008 Olympics. He won an impressive eight gold medals for the United States, breaking the record for most golds in a single Olympic Games (previously held by Mark Spitz with seven in 1972).

However, looking at countries, China actually won the most gold medals overall in 2008, bringing home a total of 48. The United States did lead in total medals that year though, with 112 medals including their 36 golds.