The U.S. is the decisive leader in medal count
We’re less than a week out from the Tokyo Olympics—and it’s time to think about how the international competition in Japan will set into motion age-old rivalries between countries around the world, which will formally start as the Opening Ceremony kicks off on July 23.
The Summer Olympics this year will involve 339 events across 33 sports. The Summer Olympics are showcases for different countries than the Winter Olympics: without snow sports, places that don’t have access to cold climates have a better shot at featuring their homegrown talent. The Summer Olympics are where runners, swimmers and team sports players shine.
For this summer’s Tokyo Olympics, the country to beat is indisputably the U.S., with a historic tally of 2,542 medals collected over 100-plus years of Summer Olympics dating back to 1896. (In second place is the Soviet Union, which picked up over 1,000 summer medals in its stint as a state from 1955 to 1985. Meanwhile the modern state of Russia, known as the Russian Federation, has over 400, collected on either end of the Soviet experience.)
Michael Phelps remains the world’s most decorated individual Olympian, with a decisive 28 medals all of his own, thanks to his dominance in swimming over the past decade-plus. (The runner-up in that ranking, the Soviet Union’s Larysa Latinina, only has 18.)
These are the 10 countries with the most Summer Olympics medals:
1. United States — 2,542
2. Soviet Union — 1,010
3. Great Britain — 867
4. Germany — 760
5. France — 739
6. Italy — 592
7. China — 546
8. Sweden — 498
9. Hungary — 495
9. Australia — 495
10. Japan — 441
Read more about the Tokyo Olympics:
- Naomi Osaka: ‘It’s O.K. to Not Be O.K.’
- Motherhood Could Have Cost Olympian Allyson Felix. She Wouldn’t Let It
- ‘Unapologetic and Unafraid.’ Sue Bird Stares Down Olympic Glory in Tokyo and Equity Off the Court
- Meet 6 Heroes Who Helped Battle COVID-19 Before Competing in the Tokyo Olympics and Paralympics
- 48 Athletes to Watch at the Tokyo Olympics
- The Olympic Refugee Team Was Created to Offer Hope. Some Athletes Are Running Away From It