Paris Olympics: Who rules the precious metals?

Harder than expected, but still at the top! The US women's basketball team's victory over France in the Olympics final was much more important than it initially seemed. Apart from winning the eighth straight gold, the American basketball ladies brought their country the 40th gold medal in Paris and helped the USA overtake China in the top spot of the most successful nations list. The Chinese had an equal number of golds but far fewer silver and bronze medals (86-51 for the USA).

The Americans collected most of their medals in athletics (34) and swimming (28), while China got double-digit numbers of silverware in diving (11, 8 golds), shooting (10), and swimming (12). Japan, in the third spot, dominated wrestling, collecting eight of their 20 gold medals (45 in total) and the fourth-placed Australia excelled in swimming with 18 out of 53 medals they won.

France, at number five, won most of its 64 medals in judo, while the sixth-placed Netherlands collected only 34 pieces of silverware but as many as 15 golds. A bit surprisingly, Great Britain finished only seventh with 65 medals in total, with athletics, cycling track, and rowing as its most successful sports. South Korea holds the eighth spot with only 32 medals but 13 golds. Italy (40) and Germany (33) complete the top ten list.

Kenya top in Africa as curtains fall on Paris Olympics

Looking at the top 20, several interesting nations catch the eye, such as New Zealand (#11), Uzbekistan (#13), and Hungary (#14), which were better positioned than some outstanding sports nations like Spain or Brazil - the best South American representative. The Republic of Ireland holds the 19th spot with seven medals (4 gold and 3 bronze), while Kenya is the most successful African country with 11 pieces of silverware, all won in athletics.