2024-08-12 16:05:02
Team USA has a reputation for taking home the most medals at the Olympic Games — and this year was no different. The United States won the most medals overall, most bronze, most silver and tied for most gold medals with China.
The charts that follow break down Team USA’s grand medal sweep in Paris.
THE GOLD MEDAL RACE
Some argue that gold medals are what matter the most, and the United States and China were locked in a tight race throughout the Olympics. Here’s how it played out:
MEDALS WON BY DAY
Team USA had a medal surge on the eighth day of competition, hauling in 18 total medals. Here’s how the rest of the days looked:
MEDALS WON IN MEN’S AND WOMEN’S EVENTS
Throughout the Games, Americans medalled more consistently in women’s events than men’s. Athletes competing in women’s events clinched nearly twice as many gold medals as those competing in men’s events.
Some sports showed a greater disparity in gender events than others. The most notable gaps appeared in gymnastics (women led by 5 medals), cycling (6) and swimming (9).
THE GREAT SWIMMING RIVALRY
The United States and Australia continued their battle for supremacy in the pool. While the overall swimming medal count wasn’t that close, the United States edged Australia in golds by one.
FULL MEDAL COUNT BY SPORT FOR TEAM USA
Although Team USA often excels across the board, the U.S. is stronger in some sports than others. At this year’s Games, the sports in which the U.S. won the most medals were track and field (34 medals) and swimming (28).
These sports offer many events in which the U.S. can medal, compared to sports like basketball or soccer, where only one bronze, one silver and one gold medal are awarded.
TOP TEAM USA PERFORMERS
Swimmer Torri Huske won the most medal of any Team USA athlete, with five. Gymnast Simone Biles and swimmers Gretchen Walsh, Katie Ledecky and Regan Smith tied for second with four medals.
Huske, Biles and runner Gabby Thomas tied for most gold medals, with three each.
FACTORS THAT INFLUENCE A COUNTRY’S OLYMPIC PERFORMANCE
Every four years, countries like the U.S., China, Russia and the United Kingdom tend to outperform in the Olympic medal race.
But it’s not surprising that these nations perform well at the Olympic Games. These countries have a larger pool of potential Olympians and more national wealth to invest in their Olympic teams.
When medals won are compared to a country’s population or gross domestic product, overall medal rankings change significantly.
Click through the slides below to see how Team USA’s performance changes when considered against certain advantages.
Explore the table below to see how countries performed proportional to population, GDP and number of athletes in the Paris 2024 Olympics.
FULL MEDAL STANDINGS
Countries’ Olympic performances can be broken down in many ways. But at the end of the day, viewers’ main interest lies in the gold, silver and bronze. The table below details all medals won in the Paris 2024 Olympics.
