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The Best Olympics Statistics

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Olympic Medals by Population

In the 2008 Beijing Olympics there are 302 events and about 906 medals that were awarded. Out of curiosity, we wanted to predict how many medals each country should receive based on their population and the number of athletes they send.

We hypothesized that countries with higher populations, such as China, should have a larger pool of talent and thus receive more medals.

Country

Current Medals

# Medals by population


USA

110

42.02


China

100

182.70


Russia

72

19.56


Australia

46

2.95


France

40

8.89


Great Britain

47

8.35


Germany

41

11.33



Scroll down for the complete list and other statistics.


However, the numbers don't coincide with that hypothesis well. For example, India, with a population of almost 1 billion should receive 156 medals. When compared with the current medal count, this hypothesis is wrong.

The chart that most coincides with the current medal count is the number of medals received per number of athletes (2nd table). This chart is a statistical hypothesis that those countries who send more athletes should receive more medals. This trend is fairly accurate (compare this table to the final medal count).

The numbers should interest you. It turns out that some smaller, lower populated countries do very well, such as Jamaica. On the flip side, some highly populated countries really do horribly, such as India.

Olympic Medals per Population 

This table gives number of medals each country should receive based on their population. Notice the bad correlation of India -- currently only 2 medals! Stay updated. Complete statistics here: http://thirstywebsites.com/OlympicStats.pdf

Country

Current Medals

# Medals by population


USA

110

42.02


China

100

182.70


Russia

72

19.56


Australia

46

2.95


France

40

8.89


Great Britain

47

8.35


Germany

41

11.33


South Korea

31

6.65


Japan

25

17.60


Italy

28

8.22


Ukraine

27

6.35


Netherlands

16

2.27


Cuba

24

1.55


Belarus

19

1.34


Canada

18

4.60


Romania

8

2.95


Spain

18

6.35


Kazakhstan

13

2.13


Poland

10

5.25


Kenya

14

5.17


New Zealand

9

0.59


North Korea

6

3.28


Denmark

7

0.76


Brazil

15

25.84


Czech Rebpublic

6

1.43


Switzerland

6

1.05


Azerbaijan

7

1.17


Norway

10

0.66


Indonesia

5

31.92


Hungary

10

1.38


Armenia

6

0.41


Slovakia

6

0.74


Jamaica

11

0.37


Zimbabwe

4

1.84


Slovenia

5

0.28


India

3

156.68


Ethiopia

7

10.92


Georgia

6

0.61


Finland

4

0.73

"According to population, China should receive 182 Olympic medals and USA should only receive 42!"

Olympic Medals per Number of Athletes 

This table shows the number medals each country should receive based on the number of athletes they sent

Country

Athletes

Medals per # Athletes


China

639

53.02


U.S.A.

595

49.37


Russia

467

38.75


Germany

439

36.42


Australia

433

35.92


Japan

351

29.12


Italy

344

28.54


Canada

332

27.55


France

323

26.8


Great Britain

312

25.89


Spain

287

23.81


Brazil

277

22.98


Poland

268

22.24


South Korea

267

22.15


Ukraine

254

21.07


Netherlands

245

20.33


New Zealand

182

15.1


Belarus

181

15.02


Hungary

171

14.19


Greece

159

13.19


Cuba

149

12.36


Argentina

137

11.37


South Africa

136

11.28


Czech Republic

134

11.12


Kazakhstan

132

10.95


Venezuela

109

9.04


Croatia

105

8.71


Arab Rep. of Egypt

103

8.55


Romania

102

8.46


Sweden

97

8.05


Belgium

96

7.96


Serbia

92

7.63


Norway

85

7.05


Mexico

85

7.05


Denmark

84

6.97


Switzerland

84

6.97


Chinese Taipei

80

6.64


Portugal

77

6.39


Bulgaria

72

5.97


Austria

72

5.97


Lithuania

"The table above is the most inline with current medal count... more athletes means more medals"

Olympic Medals per Population per Number of Athletes 

This table shows number of medals each country should receive based on their population and the number of athletes they sent.

Country

Medals per Population per # Athletes


China

117.86


India

80.7


U.S.A.

45.69


Russia

29.15


Brazil

24.41


Germany

23.88


Japan

23.36


Australia

19.44


Italy

18.38


France

17.84


Great Britain

17.12


Indonesia

16.96


Canada

16.07


Spain

15.08


South Korea

14.4


Poland

13.74


Ukraine

13.71


Pakistan

12.18


Nigeria

11.57


Netherlands

11.3


Bangladesh

11.14


Mexico

10.88


Arab Rep. of Egypt

9.46


South Africa

8.94


Argentina

8.46


Belarus

8.18


New Zealand

7.84


Hungary

7.79


Turkey

7.69


Greece

7.36


Iran

7.14


Cuba

6.96


Vietnam

6.89


Philippines

6.86


Kazakhstan

6.54


Venezuela

6.45


Ethiopia

6.37


Czech Republic

6.28


Colombia

5.72


Romania

5.71


Thailand

5.38


Kenya

4.91


Algeria

4.91


Chinese Taipei

4.9


Belgium

4.71


Croatia

4.67


Sweden

4.66


Serbia

4.5


North Korea

4.25


Morocco

4.18


Switzerland

4.01


Portugal

3.93


Denmark

3.86


Norway

3.86


Austria

3.56


Bulgaria

3.51


Myanmar

3.49


Malaysia

3.24


Lithuania

3.11


Great links on Olympic Stats 

Olympic Medal Count Map - 2008 Beijing Olympics - Interactive Graphic - NYTimes.com

A breakdown of medals that countries have won in B more...1 point

Olympic Athletes Sent from each Country 

The "Athletes" columns shows how many athletes were sent by each country. The last column shows how many athletes should have been sent from each country.

Country

Athletes

# Athletes country should send


U.S.A.

595

506.47


New Zealand

182

7.1


Great Britain

312

100.65


Canada

332

55.4


Australia

433

35.54


Germany

439

136.58


India

57

1888.44


China

639

2202.03


Indonesia

24

384.78


Bangladesh

5

263.57


Pakistan

21

272.58


Nigeria

33

246.01


Philippines

15

150.27


Vietnam

21

145.15


Ethiopia

22

131.6


Mexico

85

177.22


Thailand

25

104.72


Myanmar

6

78.08


Tanzania

0

67.2


Iran

55

117.11


Sudan

9

64.06


Turkey

68

117.26


Iraq

4

48.16


Afghanistan

4

45.09


Uganda

11

51.3


Nepal

7

46.84


Peru

12

47.76


Brazil

277

311.44


Uzbekistan

12

45.47


Yemen

5

37.19


Ghana

9

39


Mozambique

6

35.54


Madagascar

4

32.7


Syria

7

33.11


Saudi Arabia

16

41.09


Sri Lanka

8

32.06


Niger

0

23.63


Burkina Faso

2

24.56


Arab Rep. of Egypt

103

124.93


Malawi

4

23.13

Complete Olympics Statistics 

The tables above are partial. Please visit the complete Olympics Statistics to see numbers for all participating countries.

Final Medal Count 

USA or China at the Final Medal Count?

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China

gary Li says:

i agree iwth buffalo, china win gold, but usa win total count

rod says:

China...no way USA can reach them

James says:

China by a land slide

Peter says:

Try statistics of already received medals per country inhabitans.
You will see that USA is somewhere in the middle...
China is going up... There is a corelation between economics and olympic success.

USA

dude in underpants says:

hhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhheeeeeeeeeeeeelllllllllllllllloooooooo

bob the builder says:

U.S.A! U.S.A!

liahona says:

Great information. Interesting to look at the medals counts by population and athletes. Nice job.

Greg says:

If China doesn't come out on top, I am sure some heads will roll. Literally!

Travle says:

USA all the way

 
1 of 2 pages
 

Olympic Medals by GDP 

What if GDP was the only factor? This data was calculated to determine how many medals each country should receive based on their Gross Domestic Product. (The data is fairly skewed, because this table doesn't account population)

Country

Medals per GDP


U.S.A.

230.63


China

73.03


India

55.34


Japan

54.16


Germany

46.19


Great Britain

42.65


Russia

35.06


France

23.97


Italy

23.86


Brazil

21.88


Canada

21.48


Spain

18.31


Australia

15.94


South Korea

15.14


Indonesia

14.88


Mexico

12.81


Netherlands

11.05


Poland

7.59


Ukraine

7.56


Pakistan

7.21


Turkey

7.06


Nigeria

7.00


Bangladesh

6.52


South Africa

6.39


Argentina

6.26


Arab Rep. of Egypt

6.23


Greece

5.24


Iran

5.20


Hungary

4.90


New Zealand

4.71


Sweden

4.33


Venezuela

4.31


Belarus

4.09


Chinese Taipei

4.08


Philippines

3.94


Czech Republic

3.72


Switzerland

3.44


Vietnam

3.21


Thailand

3.11


Kazakhstan

2.92


Colombia

2.86


Norway

2.78


Romania

2.77


Cuba

2.73


Austria

2.70


Ethiopia

2.69


Denmark

2.40


Algeria

2.40


Portugal

2.34


Saudi Arabia

2.31


Kenya

2.19


Croatia

2.13


Belgium

2.13


Serbia

1.85


Finland

1.82


Morocco

1.73


Malaysia

1.25


Ireland

1.22


North Korea

1.21


Medal count a product of many factors

When you take number of athletes, GDP and population into account, you can predict more accurately the final medal count. Look at the table below.

Olympic Medals by Population, Athletes and GDP 

This table shows how many medals each country should receive based on 3 factors: the country's population, their GDP and the number of athletes they sent to the Beijing Games. Notice how this table is most accurate when shown against the current medal cou

Country

AVG per GDP/Athletes, population


U.S.A.

107.34


China

96.62


India

59.91


Japan

39.92


Germany

34.37


Great Britain

26.81


Russia

26.6


France

26.11


Italy

23.94


Brazil

23.57


Canada

18.67


Spain

18.04


Australia

18


South Korea

14.91


Indonesia

13.71


Mexico

12.21


Netherlands

11.8


Poland

11.5


Ukraine

9.92


Pakistan

8.92


Turkey

8.81


Nigeria

8.64


Bangladesh

7.83


South Africa

7.53


Argentina

7.08


Arab Rep. of Egypt

7.01


Greece

6.66


Iran

6.39


Hungary

5.96


New Zealand

5.94


Sweden

5.63


Venezuela

5.61


Belarus

5.45


Chinese Taipei

5.4


Philippines

5.37


Czech Republic

5.16


Switzerland

5.03


Vietnam

4.98


Thailand

4.95


Kazakhstan

4.94


Colombia

4.77


Norway

4.74


Romania

4.73


Cuba

4.64


Austria

4.45


Ethiopia

4.36


Denmark

4.31


Algeria

4


Portugal

3.86


Saudi Arabia

3.67


Kenya

3.44


Croatia

3.4


Belgium

3.39


Serbia

3.23


Finland

3.21


Morocco

3.2


Malaysia

3.2


Ireland

3.13


North Korea

2.84


China and USA were close in the final medal count. China received the most Golds, but USA received the most medals.

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Olympic Memorabilia 

2008 Olympics: Beijing 2008 Complete Opening Ceremony

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Latest Olympic News 

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Who really has the most medals? 

Many have spoken that economics plays a huge role in Olympic medals. I tend to agree. Check out this graph. It shows which country made the most medals per their Gross Domestic Product during the 2004 Athens Games. As it stands, the small, poor country of Ethiopia dominates over the Olympics with an incredible medal count. Go Ethiopia!

I have also been informed of a great widget that displays this same data for the current Beijing Games. Check it out. Currently Jamaica stands at the top. Usain Bolt, 'bolting' past his opponents, really made a difference here.

Athens 2004 Olympics - Medals per population 

Tell me your thoughts... 

txbrian wrote...

YES!! The achievements. The results. The Gold!!!!

ReplyPosted September 03, 2008

American wrote...

Please read, this is critical:
http://www.squidoo.com/propheciesforamerica
God Bless you!

ReplyPosted August 29, 2008

miragana wrote...

Good day! I like your lens.
It is very informative and has a very good quality in it.
I have given it a 5 star rating.

www.Squidoo.com/MPI
mliragana.blogspot.com

Thank you very much for your time.

ReplyPosted August 28, 2008

divo2000 wrote...

Thanks COOLFLOWEU,
How is Germany treating you? I would have to agree with you (don't tell anyone but I'm a fan of the EU). The EU stomps everyone else--especially in economics. I know it doesn't sound realistic, but the EU as a united country would be the next world power--especially at the games. I've found that economics plays a huge role, if not the greatest role, when it comes to winning Olympic medals.

ReplyPosted August 28, 2008

Lensmaster

COOLFLOWEU wrote

I am a German from the European Union and set up a website with the intention to motivate my fellow Europeans to think more %u201EEuropean".
As you can see under www.EUCHAMPIONS.eu
the European Union comes out on top and way ahead of China and USA.
Of course you may argue this doesn't count, because European Union is no country or nation and if it was, could only have sent 3 athletes per event. Agreed as far as the official table of the International Olympic Committee is concerned, but to show the Europeans themselves - and while on the go also the rest of the world - how well the EU athletes have performed, why not ?!
Especially if you take into account the EU motto : UNITED IN DIVERSITY .
Or if you want to put it under an old competition (or war-) slogan :
%u201EMarch separately, but win together!"
The table also includes a column giving the population per country, allowing everybodyone's own MPC calculation.

Reply Posted August 26, 2008

Lensmaster

Chuck wrote

Your medals per GDP table must be incorrect because Ireland has a greater GDP than New Zealand but is below us in numbers of medals they should win based on GDP. I'm pretty sure Sweden would also have a higher GDP than us too, but not shown in your table.

Reply Posted August 22, 2008

divo2000 wrote...

Thanks Mitch. Australia has always done well in the summer games. I would assume many countries reward their athletics programs well (such as USA and European countries). I also think that culture may play a huge role. Does anyone know about the athletic culture in India? Maybe athletics is not a huge emphasis in India? (They sure have the population to win a lot of medals).

James, thanks for the widget. I added a link above. Usain Bolt is the real 'Flash.'

ReplyPosted August 22, 2008

Lensmaster

james wrote

@Divo2000
I have found a nice widget that displays the medal count per million dollar GDP.

I think you might like it:-)
http://www.clearspring.com/widgets/48abc6bc903b61d0
Go Jamaica

Reply Posted August 22, 2008