The dust has finally settled in Paris. Honestly, if you were watching the final day of the Games, your heart was probably in your throat. It all came down to a single basket. One point. When the U.S. women’s basketball team squeaked past France 67-66, they didn't just win another gold; they fundamentally altered the 2024 Olympic medal count and saved the top spot for Team USA.
It was dramatic. It was messy. And it was historic.
For the first time in the history of the Summer Olympics, we saw a tie for the most gold medals between the two powerhouses. Both the United States and China finished with exactly 40 golds. Usually, one country pulls away by two or three, but Paris 2024 was a different beast entirely. While the golds were dead even, the U.S. comfortably took the "overall" crown with 126 total medals compared to China’s 91.
The Battle for the Top: USA vs. China
Most people don't realize how close China came to actually winning the whole thing. For the majority of the final week, China sat comfortably in the lead. They swept all eight diving golds—an unprecedented feat—and dominated table tennis and weightlifting. Li Wenwen's victory in the +81kg weightlifting class on the final Sunday seemed like the nail in the coffin. It put China at 40 golds.
At that moment, the U.S. was sitting at 39.
The pressure was immense. The U.S. had a shot in women's volleyball but lost to Italy (who, by the way, looked unstoppable). That left it all to the women's basketball team. They had a 60-game winning streak on the line. They were playing the host nation in a stadium that sounded like a jet engine. They won by one point. That single point tied the gold count and, because the U.S. had way more silver medals (44 to China's 27), it gave them the official number one ranking on the International Olympic Committee (IOC) table.
Breaking Down the Top Five
The 2024 Olympic medal count wasn't just a two-horse race, though. Here is how the top of the table actually looked when the lights went out at the Stade de France:
The United States finished first with 40 gold, 44 silver, and 42 bronze for a massive 126 total. China followed with 40 gold, 27 silver, and 24 bronze (91 total). Japan really snuck up on people, grabbing third place with 20 golds. Australia had their best-ever showing, finishing fourth with 18 golds, fueled largely by a dominant performance in the pool. Then you have the hosts, France, who rode a wave of home-turf energy to fifth place with 16 golds and 64 medals total.
The Leon Marchand Factor and the French Surge
If you want to know why France jumped from 10 golds in Tokyo to 16 in Paris, you only need to look at one man: Léon Marchand.
He was the face of these Games. He didn't just win; he dismantled the competition. Four individual gold medals in a single Olympics is the kind of stuff only legends like Michael Phelps or Mark Spitz do. Every time he stepped onto the blocks at the La Défense Arena, the "Allez Léon!" chants were deafening.
But it wasn't just swimming. France showed up in places they usually don't. Their men's rugby sevens team, led by the superstar Antoine Dupont, took gold. They won in mountain biking, volleyball, and taekwondo. It was their best performance since 1900.
Surprises That Shook the Standings
Sometimes the 2024 Olympic medal count is defined more by who didn't win.
Take the men's 1500m on the track. Everyone was talking about the rivalry between Jakob Ingebrigtsen and Josh Kerr. They were bickering in the press for months. Then, out of nowhere, American Cole Hocker turned on the jets in the final 50 meters, breaking the Olympic record and stealing the gold. Ingebrigtsen didn't even make the podium. It was a total shocker.
Then there was the women's rugby sevens bronze medal match. The U.S. women were down to Australia with seconds left. Alex "Spiff" Sedrick caught the ball, broke a tackle, and ran nearly the full length of the field to score as time expired. That one bronze felt like a gold for the American program, marking their first-ever medal in the sport.
The Complexity of the Medal Table
There is always a debate about how we should actually measure success. Is it the most golds? Or the most total medals?
If you look at the American media, they almost always list the table by total count. Under that logic, the U.S. won by a landslide (126 to 91). However, the IOC and most of the rest of the world rank by gold medals first. This year, that made things incredibly awkward because of the 40-40 tie.
It highlights a shift in global sports. China has moved past being just a "niche" power in diving and gymnastics. They are winning in "Western" dominated sports now, like Pan Zhanle's world-record-shattering gold in the 100m freestyle. The gap is closing.
Small Countries, Big Moments
We can't ignore the "firsts."
- Saint Lucia: Julien Alfred won the women's 100m, the first medal ever for her country.
- Dominica: Thea LaFond took gold in the triple jump.
- Botswana: Letsile Tebogo won the 200m, bringing home his nation's first-ever gold.
These individual moments don't change the top of the 2024 Olympic medal count much, but they represent a massive shift in where talent is coming from. 91 different nations won at least one medal in Paris. That’s nearly half the countries on Earth.
What This Means for Los Angeles 2028
The countdown to LA28 has already started. If Paris taught us anything, it’s that home-field advantage is real. France’s 64 medals were a direct result of the energy and investment of being the host. You can bet the U.S. is looking at that 40-40 gold tie with China and feeling a bit restless.
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When the Games head to California, the U.S. will likely have the largest delegation once again. But China’s efficiency—winning 40 golds with only 91 total medals—is terrifyingly high. They don't waste opportunities.
If you're looking to track how your favorite country is doing as we move into the next Olympic cycle, keep an eye on the World Championships in swimming and athletics over the next two years. Those are the best "early warning" systems for who will dominate the podium in 2028. You should also watch the development of youth programs in France; they’ve proven they can compete with the giants, and they won’t want to slide back down the rankings now that their home party is over.
The era of one-nation dominance is fading. We're moving into a time where three or four nations could realistically fight for that top spot, and honestly, that makes the competition a whole lot more fun to watch.