# Stop with the Medal Counts...It's Gold Jerry, Gold! **URL:** \ **Category:** The BBQ Pit\ **Created:** [February 20, 2014, 4:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stop-with-the-medal-counts-its-gold-jerry-gold/681800 "2014-02-20T16:46:31Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Gangster\_Octopus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/a8b319/32.png) [@Gangster\_Octopus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gangster_Octopus)\ **Post date:** [February 20, 2014, 4:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stop-with-the-medal-counts-its-gold-jerry-gold/681800/1 "2014-02-20T16:46:31Z")
So currently the US leads the medal count…Hooray! But you know what, that is built up primarily on second and third place results. How about, Oh I don’t know listing the top country as the one with the most Gold medals, because last I checked the Gold Medal winner is like the champion or something. And that would be Norway. Gratulerer til Norge!!! ---
**Author:** ![Jackmannii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jackmannii/32/311_2.png) [@Jackmannii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jackmannii)\ **Post date:** [February 20, 2014, 5:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stop-with-the-medal-counts-its-gold-jerry-gold/681800/2 "2014-02-20T17:04:14Z")
Enough with the medal counts period - stop obsessing over “national pride”, celebrate individual and team sport athletic achievement. ---
**Author:** ![thursday\_next](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/8797f3/32.png) [@thursday\_next](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/thursday_next)\ **Post date:** [February 20, 2014, 5:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stop-with-the-medal-counts-its-gold-jerry-gold/681800/3 "2014-02-20T17:04:31Z")
I completely agree with you, which is why I get my medal results from the [Beeb](http://www.bbc.com/sport/winter-olympics/2014/medals/countries). Then I can look to see what each county received medals in. Imagine my surprise when Netherlands shot to the top all the sudden. They did a darn good job in one category. ---
**Author:** ![Happy\_Lendervedder](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/happy_lendervedder/32/8488_2.png) [@Happy\_Lendervedder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Happy_Lendervedder)\ **Post date:** [February 20, 2014, 5:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stop-with-the-medal-counts-its-gold-jerry-gold/681800/4 "2014-02-20T17:05:35Z")
Why can’t everyone just get a medal for showing up and trying their hardest? ---
**Author:** ![running\_coach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/running_coach/32/15836_2.png) [@running\_coach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/running_coach)\ **Post date:** [February 20, 2014, 5:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stop-with-the-medal-counts-its-gold-jerry-gold/681800/5 "2014-02-20T17:07:02Z")
Except counting only Golds, that means that Switzerland (6 gold/11 total metals) is tied with the Netherlands (6 golds/22 total medals). And if you try to assign points to each place, how the points are allocated will change the rankings. Example: In track, dual meets are scored 5-3-1. That would give Norway a score of 69-61 over the US. Using championship meet scoring( more than 6 teams) 10-8-6-4-2-1, then the US outscores Norway 176-174. ---
**Author:** ![Smeghead](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/f1d935/32.png) [@Smeghead](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Smeghead)\ **Post date:** [February 20, 2014, 5:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stop-with-the-medal-counts-its-gold-jerry-gold/681800/6 "2014-02-20T17:33:41Z")
[Relevant](http://www.theonion.com/articles/scandinavian-conquerors-ransack-seaside-village-of,35316/) ---
**Author:** ![Canadjun](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/76d3ee/32.png) [@Canadjun](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Canadjun)\ **Post date:** [February 20, 2014, 6:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stop-with-the-medal-counts-its-gold-jerry-gold/681800/7 "2014-02-20T18:00:01Z")
> [@Gangster\_Octopus](#): > > So currently the US leads the medal count…Hooray! But you know what, that is built up primarily on second and third place results. How about, Oh I don’t know listing the top country as the one with the most Gold medals, because last I checked the Gold Medal winner is like the champion or something. And that would be Norway. > > Gratulerer til Norge!!! Ask your neighbours to the north. [Olympics – CBC Sports](http://olympics.cbc.ca/medals/index.html) ETA Or, ask those folks across the pond from us, as **thursday\_next** suggested. ---
**Author:** ![Gangster\_Octopus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/a8b319/32.png) [@Gangster\_Octopus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gangster_Octopus)\ **Post date:** [February 20, 2014, 6:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stop-with-the-medal-counts-its-gold-jerry-gold/681800/8 "2014-02-20T18:11:40Z")
> [@Canadjun](#): > > Ask your neighbours to the north. [Olympics – CBC Sports](http://olympics.cbc.ca/medals/index.html) > > ETA Or, ask those folks across the pond from us, as **thursday\_next** suggested. It’s interesting to see that Russia and Germany are 2 and 3, yet have no Women’s gold medals. ---
**Author:** ![gigi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/a587f6/32.png) [@gigi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gigi)\ **Post date:** [February 20, 2014, 6:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stop-with-the-medal-counts-its-gold-jerry-gold/681800/9 "2014-02-20T18:16:27Z")
> [@Jackmannii](#): > > Enough with the medal counts period - stop obsessing over “national pride”, celebrate individual and team sport athletic achievement. Bingo. ---
**Author:** ![naita](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/naita/32/5862_2.png) [@naita](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/naita)\ **Post date:** [February 20, 2014, 7:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stop-with-the-medal-counts-its-gold-jerry-gold/681800/10 "2014-02-20T19:25:39Z")
> [@Jackmannii](#): > > Enough with the medal counts period - stop obsessing over “national pride”, celebrate individual and team sport athletic achievement. Nonsense! Norway rules, everyone else drools! Wooo! ---
**Author:** ![dzeiger](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/46a35a/32.png) [@dzeiger](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dzeiger)\ **Post date:** [February 20, 2014, 8:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stop-with-the-medal-counts-its-gold-jerry-gold/681800/11 "2014-02-20T20:44:34Z")
> [@Jackmannii](#): > > Enough with the medal counts period - stop obsessing over “national pride”, celebrate individual and team sport athletic achievement. Is there really an “obsession,” though? I mean, NBC mentions the medal counts for each day once at the end of primetime, and that’s about it. I don’t know that it’s been a really huge deal since the end of the Cold War. I think it’s fairly well understood that medal counts are wonky anyway with the number of events out there. A curling or hockey team can take two weeks of competition to add one to a medal count, while at the same time a single athlete can run races for a 500m, 1000m, 1500m, a relay, etc. ---
**Author:** ![Canadjun](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/76d3ee/32.png) [@Canadjun](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Canadjun)\ **Post date:** [February 20, 2014, 9:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stop-with-the-medal-counts-its-gold-jerry-gold/681800/12 "2014-02-20T21:25:07Z")
> [@gigi](#): > > Bingo. Bingo is an Olympic sport? ---
**Author:** ![Gangster\_Octopus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/a8b319/32.png) [@Gangster\_Octopus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gangster_Octopus)\ **Post date:** [February 20, 2014, 9:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stop-with-the-medal-counts-its-gold-jerry-gold/681800/13 "2014-02-20T21:55:47Z")
So do away with the Parade of Nations and the National Olympic Committees and all that. I mean if we are stressing the individual here… ---
**Author:** ![gigi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/a587f6/32.png) [@gigi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gigi)\ **Post date:** [February 20, 2014, 11:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stop-with-the-medal-counts-its-gold-jerry-gold/681800/14 "2014-02-20T23:25:41Z")
> [@Canadjun](#): > > Bingo is an Olympic sport? If it isn’t, it should be! ---
**Author:** ![Gorsnak](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gorsnak/32/7587_2.png) [@Gorsnak](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gorsnak)\ **Post date:** [February 20, 2014, 11:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stop-with-the-medal-counts-its-gold-jerry-gold/681800/15 "2014-02-20T23:56:20Z")
Clearly you should prefer total medal count or gold only depending on which one makes your country look better at the current Olympics. In four years no one will remember which stance you took, so you’ll be free to reverse your position next time round if it’s advantageous. ---
**Author:** ![The\_Other\_Waldo\_Pepper](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/the_other_waldo_pepper/32/12370_2.png) [@The\_Other\_Waldo\_Pepper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Other_Waldo_Pepper)\ **Post date:** [February 21, 2014, 1:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stop-with-the-medal-counts-its-gold-jerry-gold/681800/16 "2014-02-21T01:13:13Z")
> [@Gorsnak](#): > > Clearly you should prefer total medal count or gold only depending on which one makes your country look better at the current Olympics. In four years no one will remember which stance you took, so you’ll be free to reverse your position next time round if it’s advantageous. You can bookmark me hereby declaring for Gold=3, Silver=2, Bronze=1. Er, so long as Decathlon gold counts double. ---
**Author:** ![Ulf\_the\_Unwashed](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/b4bc9f/32.png) [@Ulf\_the\_Unwashed](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ulf_the_Unwashed)\ **Post date:** [February 21, 2014, 1:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stop-with-the-medal-counts-its-gold-jerry-gold/681800/17 "2014-02-21T01:28:24Z")
> [@Gangster\_Octopus](#): > > It’s interesting to see that Russia and Germany are 2 and 3, yet have no Women’s gold medals. German Marie Hoefl-Riesch won the women’s alpine combined, Carina Vogt won the women’s ski jump, and Natalie Geisenberger won the women’s luge. Yes, three is close to zero, I agree 🙂 (Germany also won the team luge championship, which included one woman (Geisenberger) and three men) ---
**Author:** ![flodnak](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/838e76/32.png) [@flodnak](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/flodnak)\ **Post date:** [February 22, 2014, 5:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stop-with-the-medal-counts-its-gold-jerry-gold/681800/18 "2014-02-22T17:58:20Z")
> [@Jackmannii](#): > > Enough with the medal counts period - stop obsessing over “national pride”, celebrate individual and team sport athletic achievement. But if we do that, how will we know if we’re beating Sweden?! 😕 ---
**Author:** ![drewtwo99](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/d07c76/32.png) [@drewtwo99](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/drewtwo99)\ **Post date:** [February 22, 2014, 8:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stop-with-the-medal-counts-its-gold-jerry-gold/681800/19 "2014-02-22T20:52:17Z")
Can we start an argument that subjective competitions shouldn’t count for much in the rankings of countries? Anything that requires a judge to give points should be be worth maybe 1/3 as much in the medal counts! ---
**Author:** ![naita](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/naita/32/5862_2.png) [@naita](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/naita)\ **Post date:** [February 22, 2014, 9:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stop-with-the-medal-counts-its-gold-jerry-gold/681800/20 "2014-02-22T21:01:01Z")
> [@flodnak](#): > > But if we do that, how will we know if we’re beating Sweden?! 😕 Well, we could still celebrate each time our individuals beat their individuals. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stop-with-the-medal-counts-its-gold-jerry-gold/681800.md?page=2)