Olympic Medal Count 2026: Norway Tops the Table as Tallies and Records Vary

The Olympic Medal Count 2026 shows Norway at the summit of the Winter Games, while U. S. athletes produced several breakthrough performances that reshaped parts of the standings. Conflicting tallies circulating in the coverage list different totals for several teams, making the exact ranking a moving target as the Games conclude.

Norway’s 18 golds and the role of Johannes Høsflot Klæbo

One set of figures places Norway with 18 gold medals and 41 total medals — the most golds by any country in Winter Olympics history. That haul included six golds from Johannes Høsflot Klæbo, a contribution described as larger than the medal totals of all but seven other countries at these Games. Norway’s population of about 5. 7 million was repeatedly noted as small compared with larger winter-sports nations, yet the team again led the table.

Norway’s strength remains concentrated in cross-country skiing, biathlon and ski jumping, and the nation has topped gold counts at every Winter Olympics since 2014, tying with Germany in 2018. Observers point to climate and terrain, high wealth per capita and a national culture of sport as contributing factors. Former Olympian Morten Aasen has explained that Norway avoids expensive disciplines such as skeleton or bobsleigh because they are costly, adding, “We are a very rich country, but we believe in the socialist way of doing things. That success should be from working hard and being together. ” Geir Jordet, a professor at the Norwegian School of Sports Sciences in Oslo, distilled Norway’s formula as “Collaboration, communication and care. ”

United States medal numbers and landmark U. S. wins

The United States had a season of notable moments even as differing medal counts place it in varying positions. In one tally the U. S. finished second with 12 golds and 33 total medals; another tally lists Team USA with 24 medals in total and seven golds, placing the Americans third in total medals. The coverage also states that the U. S. set team records alongside Great Britain and Australia.

Individual U. S. achievements were emphatic. Breezy Johnson won gold in the women’s downhill on Feb. 8, becoming only the second American woman to win that event; it was her first Olympic medal and the first gold for Team USA at these Games. At the podium she said, “it doesn’t feel real yet. ” Ilia Malinin, nicknamed the “Quad God, ” delivered a decisive performance in the figure skating team event that provided enough points to defeat Japan. On Feb. 11, Elizabeth Lemley, 20, captured gold in her Olympic debut in women’s moguls, with teammate Jaelin Kauf taking silver. Speedskater Jordan Stolz won gold in the men’s 1, 000 meters, setting an Olympic record, and followed with a second gold on Saturday, again setting an Olympic record. Isabel Yip is listed as a news associate for NBC News in the coverage that documented these U. S. milestones.

Italy and the Netherlands: host totals and matching gold counts

Host Italy’s totals are given differently in separate tallies. One account records Italy with 25 total medals, nine of them gold; another places Italy level with the Netherlands at 10 golds. The Netherlands’ ten golds were highlighted as striking given its population of roughly 18 million, a reminder that medal concentration in sports such as speed skating can elevate smaller countries’ tallies.

The broader landscape included references to other large-population competitors: the United States (342 million), China (1. 4 billion), Germany (84 million) and Canada (40 million), underscoring how Norway’s results stood out against far larger populations.

Great Britain and Australia set best-ever Winter Olympic hauls

Two nations with less extensive winter-sports traditions posted their best Winter Games performances. Great Britain recorded three golds, a silver and a bronze, its strongest haul at a Winter Olympics. Australia matched that trend with three golds, two silver and a bronze, another best-ever team result.

Olympic Medal Count 2026 discrepancies and what they mean

Counts circulating in the coverage differ: one tally puts Norway on 18 golds and 41 total with the U. S. at 12 golds and 33 total; another shows Norway with 15 golds and 32 total while listing the U. S. on 24 medals and seven golds and third for total medals. The Netherlands and Italy likewise appear with divergent gold totals in different accounts. What makes this notable is how a few individual performances — notably Klæbo’s six golds and Jordan Stolz’s double Olympic-record wins — can shift perceptions of national standing. The cause-and-effect is straightforward: concentrated individual success and strengths in particular sports have propelled some nations upward, while differing tallies in circulation mean final rankings can look different depending on which count is used.

Several other specific details in the coverage underscore the complexity of the final picture, and some entries remain unclear in the provided context.