There are two commonly accepted methods for counting medals: a gold-medal-focused method, as used by the IOC, and a total medal count based on the country with the most total medals. The United States currently leads in both methods, but they also provide an opportunity to consider different ways of measuring Olympic success, given the vast differences in conditions around the world.
Last week we took a closer look at medals per capita, which shows which countries have the most talent, based on the number of citizens it takes to win one medal. Today we’ll take a different look at the medal count at the Paris Olympics, based on Gross Domestic Product (GDP).
Needless to say, money plays a big role in the success of any sport. From sending athletes to providing well-funded training, at least Several To win the Olympics, you need money, and while a pure GDP analysis has some drawbacks because it doesn’t give us an accurate picture of each country’s sports budget, it at least tells us which countries are the most active in sport with the fewest resources.
This count includes only countries that win 10 or more medals.
2024 Olympics medal count based on GDP
| Rank | Country | Money | Silver | bronze | total | GDP | Price per medal |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rank | Country | Money | Silver | bronze | total | GDP | Price per medal |
| 1 | new zealand | Four | 6 | 2 | 12 | 248.0B | 20,666,666,666 |
| 2 | Australia | 18 | 14 | 11 | 43 | 1.63T | 37,906,976,744 |
| 3 | Netherlands | Ten | Five | 6 | twenty one | 1.00T | 47,619,047,619 |
| Four | France | 13 | 17 | twenty one | 51 | 2.78T | 54,509,803,921 |
| Five | South Korea | 2 | 8 | 7 | 27 | 1.67T | 61,851,851,851 |
| 6 | England | 12 | 17 | 20 | 49 | 3.09T | 63,061,224,489 |
| 7 | Italy | 9 | Ten | 7 | 26 | 2.05T | 78,846,153,846 |
| 8 | Spain | 2 | 3 | 8 | 13 | 1.42T | 109,230,769,231 |
| 9 | Canada | 6 | Four | 9 | 19 | 2.14T | 112,631,578,947 |
| Ten | Japan | 12 | 7 | 13 | 32 | 4.23T | 132,187,005,000 |
| 11 | Brazil | 2 | Five | 7 | 14 | 1.92T | 137,142,857,143 |
| 12 | Germany | 9 | 6 | Five | 20 | 4.08T | 204,000,000,000 |
| 13 | united states of america | 27 | 35 | 33 | 95 | 25.44 tons | 267,789,473,684 |
| 14 | China | 26 | twenty four | 17 | 67 | 17.96 tons | 268,059,701,493 |
Apart from the countries that won ten medals, there were some other standout countries worth noting.
- Greece: 7 medals, $217.6 billion GDP, $3.1 billion per medal
- Cape Verde: $2.22 billion per medal with a GDP of $2.22 billion
- St. Lucia: 2 medals with a GDP of $2.34 billion, $1.17 billion per medal
- India: 3 medals with a GDP of $3.42 trillion, $1.14 trillion per medal
