Explored – The Most Olympic Gold Medals by Country

The 2024 Paris Olympics was a celebration of the very best athletes on the planet, as the representatives of 204 nations competed in 329 events across 32 different sports. This summer saw the 33rd iteration of the Olympics’ iconic Summer Games, while the Paralympics subsequently followed in the same French city.

The best sports betting sites in the US provided extensive coverage of the Summer Games, which once again saw America top the medals’ table. But who exactly has won the most Olympic gold medals by country through history, and which nations continue to blaze a trail for others to follow in terms of sporting excellence?

• Addressing the Olympic Medal Count by Country
• Olympics Winners’ Countries – Who Has Claimed The Most Golds?
• What Happens When You Factor in the Winter Olympics?
• Who is The Most Successful Olympic Nation Overall?
• The Last Word – Why the United States Remains the Dominant Olympic Nation

Addressing the Olympic Medal Count by Country

Before we drill down deeper into the most Olympic gold medals by country, it’s worth addressing the overall medal count through history. After all, Olympic silver and bronze medals are also highly sought after, especially in particularly competitive disciplines such as sprinting, track and field and association football.

The total Olympic medal count by country includes every single gold, silver and bronze medal that has been won by a particular nation. We’ve taken a much closer look at which country’s team has won the most medals in Olympic history in the table above, with a number of interesting insights arising as a result.

The clear takeaway here is that the United States remains the most successful Olympic nation by far. To this end, they have won twice as many Olympic medals than any other country, while they’ve also claimed more gold, silver and bronze medals than any competing team.

The United States have also topped the medal table in 19 of the 33 Summer Games contested so far (and the 29 they’ve competed in). However, it’s the former Soviet Union that has won Olympic medals at the fastest rate, with their 1,010 medals having been collected in just nine appearances. They’ve won an average of 112.22 medals per appearance, while topping the medals table on six separate occasions.

Olympics Winners’ Countries – Who Has Claimed the Most Golds?

As we’ve already touched on, the United States have won the most Olympic gold medals by country. This is true by a substantial margin too, with their current tally of 1,105 golds a staggering 710 higher than their closest rivals (the Soviet Union). Overall, they win 38.10 gold medals per Summer Games on average, highlighting the team’s consistency on the grandest of stages.

Once again, the Soviet Union have won gold medals at a higher rate than the US, averaging 43.88 per Games. So, this now disbanded region boasts an incredible (if chequered) history in the Games and the second-best Olympic medal ranking. Interestingly, Russia has won 147 golds in just six Games too, with this country having emerged from the ruins of the Soviet Union.

As we can also see, China moves above the UK when it comes the number of gold medals won, claiming 303 in 12 games at a rate of 25.25 per Olympics. The UK has won a total of 298 gold medals (including 14 in Paris in 2024). Next come France with 239, while European neighbors Italy (229) and Germany (213) have also won over 200 golds apiece.

As of 2024, some 119 different countries have won Olympic gold medals. However, just 16 have won more than 100 golds during the Summer Games, including the former East Germany, South Korea and the tiny Scandinavian country of Finland. Regardless, it’s unlikely that any country will ever supersede the United States’ record at the Games, especially as they continue to build their medal haul.

What Happens When You Factor in the Winter Olympics?

Now that we’ve addressed the most prolific Olympics winners’ countries, it’s important that we address the Winter Games. The Winter Olympics were first held in 1924, with the inaugural event hosted by Chamonix in France. Like the Summer Games, the Winter Olympics were at least partially inspired by ancient sporting events, while there have now been 24 iterations through history.

As you can imagine, the Olympic medal count by country varies when analyzing the history of the Winter Games. After all, this includes a completely different set of events and disciplines, including staples such as curling, ice hockey, Nordic combined, staking, ski-jumping and even the iconic bobsleigh!

Of course, the United States continues to excel in some of these events (such as ice hockey), while it remains a huge and well-resourced athletic powerhouse. So, it still ranks second on the all-time Winter Olympic medal list, winning 330 medals in total and 114 golds. The country also ranks second in terms of the total number of gold medals won.

But which country has outperformed the US during the Winter Olympics? Well, this honor belongs to Norway, which has won 405 medals in total and 148 golds. Norway has also won 134 silvers and 123 bronzes, across the 24 games that have been held. The unified Germany ranks third overall with 267 medals, and is the only other nation to win more than 100 golds (104).

Interestingly, China and the United Kingdom have considerably worse records in the Winter Olympics than in the Summer Games. In the case of ‘Team GB’, they’ve won just 34 medals in total across 24 separate Games, at a rate of just 1.41 per iteration. They’ve only won 12 golds since the inception of the Games too. Here’s a summary of the most successful Winter Olympic nations:

Who Is the Most Successful Olympic Nation Overall?

Across both Summer and Winter Games, the United States is clearly the most successful Olympic nation of all-time. To this end, they’ve won a staggering 3,094 medals in 53 total appearances, with this tally including 1,219 golds, exactly 1,000 silvers and 875 bronze medals. Impressively, 39.39% of America’s 3,094 medals have been gold, while they’ve won a staggering 1,890 medals more than the Soviet Union.

The Soviets rank second overall with 1,204 medals, despite only participating in 18 Summer and Winter Olympic Games. Incredibly, they’ve won an average of 66.88 medals and 26.27 golds per Games, while they remain one of just three nations that have claimed more than 1,000 Olympic medals through history.

Great Britain ranks third with 1,015 Olympic medals. However, it should be noted that European neighbors Germany have amassed 955 medals from just 31 Olympic appearances, at a rate of 30.80 per Games (compared to just 18.79 for Great Britain). France have won 953 medals in total (and 280 golds), while China’s tally of 804 medals places them sixth in the all-time table despite only making 24 appearances.

Despite Norway topping the all-time Winter Olympics medals’ table, they sit 12th in the all-time list. They’ve made 52 appearances across both Summer and Winter Games, winning a respectable 213 golds. The country has also earned 187 silvers and 176 bronze medals. Overall, Norway boasts an Olympic tally of 576 medals, some 405 of which (70.31%) have come during the Winter Games.

The Last Word – Why the United States Remains the Dominant Olympic Nation

Throughout Olympic history, there’s simply no doubt that the United States remains the most dominant nation. While this should be at least partially expected given the size of the country, the sheer scale of the United States’ dominance has been a narrative that has defined the course of Olympic history.

To summarize, no country has won more Summer Olympic medals than the United States. The country has also won the most golds, silvers and bronze medals across both Summer and Winter Games, while their combined tally of 3,094 medals is nearly three-times higher than the Soviet Union (who rank second).

Of course, it’s at the Summer Games where the United States team really shines. After all, 2,764 of the country’s 3,094 total medals have been picked up during these competitions (89.33%), including an incredible 1,105 golds. Remember, they average 38.10 golds per Summer Olympics, while they won 40 such medals at the recent Games in Paris. So, they deserve recognition as the best of all Olympics winners’ countries!