Olympic Medal Count: Norway Tops Table as Milano Cortina Games Close in Verona Arena
The closing ceremony at Verona Arena marked the end of the Milano Cortina Winter Olympics and one final look at the olympic medal count, with Norway finishing atop the table and a string of standout performances shaping national tallies.
Norway’s haul and Johannes Høsflot Klæbo’s six golds
One account lists Norway with 18 golds and 41 total medals, a haul described as the most golds by a country in Winter Olympics history; another account gives Norway 15 golds and 32 total medals. Johannes Høsflot Klæbo accounted for six golds on his own, a total the coverage notes is greater than the entire medal hauls of all but seven other countries at these Games.
Olympic Medal Count: How other nations fared
Numbers for other nations also vary between accounts. One version places the United States second with 12 golds and 33 total medals; a different account lists Team USA with 24 medals overall and seven golds, placing the American team third for total medals. Host nation Italy is given as having 10 golds in one account and 25 total medals with nine golds in another.
Small countries punching above their size
The coverage highlights population contrasts alongside medal tallies: Norway’s population is about 5. 7 million, compared with the United States at 342 million, China at 1. 4 billion, Germany at 84 million, Italy at 59 million and Canada at 40 million. The Netherlands finished with 10 golds — the same gold tally given to Italy in one account — despite a population of around 18 million.
Key U. S. golds and Olympic records
Several named performances shaped the medal flows: Breezy Johnson won gold in the women’s downhill on Feb. 8, becoming only the second American woman to win that event, and it was the first Olympic medal of her career as well as the first gold for Team USA at these Games; she said afterward that "it doesn't feel real yet. " On the same day the figure skating team event produced a medal when Ilia Malinin — nicknamed the "Quad God" — delivered a performance that earned Team USA enough points to defeat Japan. On Feb. 11, Elizabeth Lemley, 20, won gold in her Olympic debut in women's moguls while teammate Jaelin Kauf took silver. Speedskater Jordan Stolz won the men's 1, 000 meters setting an Olympic record, and on Saturday he won a second gold, again setting an Olympic record.
Closing night: opera, pop and reactions at Verona Arena
The ceremony closed with opera, dance and song inside Verona Arena. Performers included a Rigoletto-styled act, and a singer named Achille was described as belting out "Amor. " Pop acts and DJs drew visible reactions: the crowd saw Major Lazer onstage, a performer filmed by Diplo in the audience, and a commentator summed up one segment as the sort of "music they play at the gym. " Italian athletes were repeatedly shown enjoying the spectacle while other national teams appeared more reserved.
Moments and reader reaction
Reaction to on-ice competition threaded into the ceremony coverage: one piece singled out the USA’s gold in the men's hockey and called Jack Hughes "different gravy. " A reader, JJ, noted surprise that many in the crowd remained seated during the French anthem. The ceremony coverage closed with a sign-off thanking readers for following the Games and noting a return in 2030 or perhaps sooner when headlines next appear.
The next confirmed milestone from the Games referenced in the coverage is the end of Milano Cortina: Milano-Cortina is officially over and the Verona Arena ceremony closed the programme.
