Economy
The Nation With the Most Olympic Medals Per Capita
It’s not the U.S.
With the opening weekend of the Rio 2016 Olympic Games complete, China and the U.S. are tied in the overall medal count at eight medals each. Japan and Italy stand right behind them, with seven per country. But none of these nations cracks into the Top 5 by another count—arguably, the count that the Olympics should be using.
China, Japan, Italy, and the U.S. are four of the wealthiest countries competing in Rio. These nations boast large populations and high GDP indicators. These nations simply have more going for them than many of their competitors in the hunt for Olympic glory.