Team USA dominates Rio Olympics medal count

Max Stoneking, Co-Editor

27 and counting.

That is the current gold medal haul for the United States as of Aug. 16 at the 31st Olympiad in Rio De Janeiro, Brazil.

A significant portion of those 27 gold medals came from the pool. U.S. swimming has dominated the first week of competition, amassing a total of 33 medals, 16 of them gold. The success is in large part because of Michael Phelps and Katie Ledecky. Those two swimmers have nine of the 16 gold medals for U.S. swimming.

In addition to the veteran talent, Olympic newcomers have had their time in the spotlight as well. Lily King, who won the 100 meter breastroke, had never competed on the world stage until the games. Ryan Murphy took home three gold medals and broke the 100 meter backstroke world record in his first Olympics.

Outside of the pool, Team USA is having success as well. Simone Biles led the women’s gymnastics team to a gold medal in the team all-around. Biles also took gold in the individual all-around and individual vault competition.

In the women’s cycling time trial, Kristin Armstrong won her third straight gold medal. At the age of 43, Armstrong is one of the oldest in women’s cycling.

Golf made its first appearance in the Olympics in 112 years. Some of the world’s top players opted out of the competition due to the Zika virus, among other issues. For the actual competition, American Matt Kuchar made a charge on the final day to grab a bronze medal.

A rather surprising result came from the men’s equestrian team. The oldest U.S. athlete in the games, Philip Dutton, took the bronze in eventing. The United States is not known for being very competitive in any Equestrian event, however, a high scoring round by Dutton put him on the podium.

The second week of competition has featured track and field which is an event with a high viewing audience. Track and field was expected to be a lot like swimming in terms of contributing to the U.S.’s medal count. Team USA is always dominant when it comes to the Olympics. Michael Phelps, Katie Ledecky and Simone Biles among many others are the showcase athletes that have helped lift the United States to the top of the medal count.