# 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:** 11\ **Page:** 2
**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 22, 2014, 10:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stop-with-the-medal-counts-its-gold-jerry-gold/681800/21 "2014-02-22T22:58:54Z")
> [@naita](#): > > Well, we could still celebrate each time our individuals beat their individuals. I know we’re not keeping score. But IF we were keeping score we’d be winning 12 to 4… ---
**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, 11:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stop-with-the-medal-counts-its-gold-jerry-gold/681800/22 "2014-02-22T23:13:56Z")
> [@Ulf\_the\_Unwashed](#): > > I know we’re not keeping score. But IF we were keeping score we’d be winning 12 to 4… It’s not whether they win or lose, it’s whether they beat the Swedes. ---
**Author:** ![RickJay](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/bb73d2/32.png) [@RickJay](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RickJay)\ **Post date:** [February 23, 2014, 8:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stop-with-the-medal-counts-its-gold-jerry-gold/681800/23 "2014-02-23T20:26:24Z")
There is no single and fair way to ascertain what country “wins” an Olympics, not will there ever be. You can’t compare, for obvious reasons, a cold weather country to a warm weather country. Norway is naturally going to be better at skiing than Nigeria. You can’t compare a country with a small population to a country with a large one. Russia has far more opportunities to win medals than does Sweden. You can’t compare a country that concentrates on one discipline to one that succeeds in many disciplines. You can’t compare a country that is good at a sport that hands out many medals to one that only hands out one or two (look at the Dutch and speedskating, versus Canadians and hockey. Equal dominance, remarkably different medal haul in those sports.) And there’s no clear answer to the argument of “what’s a gold worth versus a bronze, and what’s a silver worth versus those?” It’s not even necessarily the same between sports. If an American woman won a silver medal in cross country, that would be a remarkable and highly commendable achievement; it would be one of the biggest upsets of a Winter Games and would correctly be regarded as one of the USA’s most amazing performances. The American women winning silver in hockey was a disappointment, and rightly so. ---
**Author:** ![Athabasca](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/b38774/32.png) [@Athabasca](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Athabasca)\ **Post date:** [February 23, 2014, 8:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stop-with-the-medal-counts-its-gold-jerry-gold/681800/24 "2014-02-23T20:59:00Z")
At least USA gets to keep Justin Bieber 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Canadjun](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/76d3ee/32.png) [@Canadjun](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Canadjun)\ **Post date:** [February 23, 2014, 9:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stop-with-the-medal-counts-its-gold-jerry-gold/681800/25 "2014-02-23T21:27:17Z")
> [@Athabasca](#): > > At least USA gets to keep Justin Bieber 🙂 Yay!!! ---
**Author:** ![That\_Don\_Guy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/that_don_guy/32/538_2.png) [@That\_Don\_Guy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/That_Don_Guy)\ **Post date:** [February 23, 2014, 9:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stop-with-the-medal-counts-its-gold-jerry-gold/681800/26 "2014-02-23T21:31:48Z")
So, of course, in the end Russia leads both the gold and total medal counts. But what I want to know is, who led the real medal count - snowboarders with Burton boards, or the ones with Kessler? ---
**Author:** ![Steken](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/e274bd/32.png) [@Steken](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Steken)\ **Post date:** [February 24, 2014, 12:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stop-with-the-medal-counts-its-gold-jerry-gold/681800/27 "2014-02-24T00:25:07Z")
Russia won - both most gold medals, and most medals all in all. But of course the only medal that really matters is the ice hockey gold, and that went to Canada. ---
**Author:** ![Athabasca](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/b38774/32.png) [@Athabasca](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Athabasca)\ **Post date:** [February 24, 2014, 12:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stop-with-the-medal-counts-its-gold-jerry-gold/681800/28 "2014-02-24T00:29:50Z")
> [@Steken](#): > > Russia won - both most gold medals, and most medals all in all. > > But of course the only medal that really matters is the ice hockey gold, and that went to Canada. Damn right, and Jonathan Toews is my homeboy from Winnipeg! ---
**Author:** ![Moonlitherial](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/4bbf92/32.png) [@Moonlitherial](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Moonlitherial)\ **Post date:** [February 24, 2014, 2:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stop-with-the-medal-counts-its-gold-jerry-gold/681800/29 "2014-02-24T14:39:12Z")
> [@Athabasca](#): > > At least USA gets to keep Justin Bieber 🙂 I hear Atlanta has a real problem with that 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Canadjun](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/76d3ee/32.png) [@Canadjun](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Canadjun)\ **Post date:** [February 24, 2014, 4:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stop-with-the-medal-counts-its-gold-jerry-gold/681800/30 "2014-02-24T16:05:03Z")
> [@Steken](#): > > But of course the only medal that really matters is the ice hockey gold, and that went to Canada. Not only that, but we got more golds AND silvers than the Americans. Nyah! 😃 ---
**Author:** ![drewtwo99](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/d07c76/32.png) [@drewtwo99](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/drewtwo99)\ **Post date:** [February 24, 2014, 8:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stop-with-the-medal-counts-its-gold-jerry-gold/681800/31 "2014-02-24T20:31:22Z")
So we got trounced by Russia \*and \*Canada? I bet this is all Obama’s fault… somehow. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stop-with-the-medal-counts-its-gold-jerry-gold/681800.md?page=1)