London 2012 Medal Count: Countries That Have Surprised in Olympic Competition

We are still very early in competition at the 2012 London Olympics, yet there have already been a number of surprises in the medal count that could be a sign of things to come over the remaining 13 days. 

The thing that makes the Olympics so special is that anything can happen. We know who the favorites are, and who should win, but on any given day at any given moment, all that we think we know doesn't matter. 

Even after two full days of competition, there are still plenty of surprises that are worth monitoring as the London Games move along. Here are the countries whose medal count has been surprising thus far. 

Kazakhstan (2 Gold Meals)

Medal Winners

Zulfiya Chinshanlo, Women's Weightlifting,117 Pounds

Alexandr Vinokurov, Road Cycling

Kazakhstan won just two gold medals at the 2008 Beijing Olympics (13 overall). Here we are just two days into the London Games and it has already matched that total. 

Zulfiya Chinshanlo's gold-medal victory was not a complete surprise, given that she has won gold at the World Weightlifting Championships twice since 2009. Her world record in the clean and jerk of 289 pounds was just icing on the cake. 

Alexandr Vinokurov's gold came out of nowhere. He is 38 years old—a fine age by normal standards, but ancient in the Olympics—and he actually retired from the sport nearly five years ago. He wasn't on anyone's radar when the race started, but he became one of the surprise stories of the first day of competition. 

Great Britain (2 Total Medals; 1 Silver, 1 Bronze)

Medal Winners

Lizzie Armitstead, Women's Road Race

Rebecca Adlington, Swimming, Women's 400-Meter Freestyle

On the list of surprising disappointments thus far, Great Britain has not taken to these Olympics the way the fans in the stands would like. 

The host country got off to a sluggish start, particularly in cycling, which was supposed to be Great Britain's specialty in these Games.

They were able to bounce back with a strong second day—that included Lizzie Armitstead winning a silver in the road race—but they have work to do if they hope to make this a memorable Olympics for London. 

North Korea (3 Total Medals; 2 Gold, 1 Bronze)

Medal Winners

Om Yun Chol, Men's Weightlifting, 123 Pounds

Kum Ae An, Women's Judo, 115 Pounds

Ryang Chun-Hwa, Women's Weightlifting, 106 Pounds

North Korea is already halfway to matching its entire 2008 Beijing medal count. It has already equaled its gold-medal total from four years ago. 

The biggest surprise has been Om Yun Chol pulling off one of the great lifts in recent memory by lifting three times his body weight to claim gold in the 123-pound weightlifting. 

North Korea is putting on quite a show at the start of the 2012 Olympics that could easily continue over the next 13 days. 

London Olympics Medal Count (As of Monday, July 30 at 6:30 a.m. ET)

Olympic Medal Tracker
	China Total: 12	6	4	2
	United States Total: 11	3	5	3
	Italy Total: 7	2	3	2
	South Korea Total: 5	2	1	2
	Japan Total: 5	0	2	3
	France Total: 4	2	1	1
	Russia Total: 4	1	0	3
	North Korea Total: 3	2	0	1
	Hungary Total: 3	1	1	1
	Australia Total: 3	1	1	1
	Brazil Total: 3	1	1	1
	Kazakhstan Total: 2	2	0	0
	Netherlands Total: 2	1	1	0
	Great Britain Total: 2	0	1	1
	Georgia Total: 1	1	0	0
	South Africa Total: 1	1	0	0
	Poland Total: 1	0	1	0
	Romania Total: 1	0	1	0
	Chinese Taipei Total: 1	0	1	0
	Colombia Total: 1	0	1	0
	Cuba Total: 1	0	1	0
	Canada Total: 1	0	0	1
	Azerbaijan Total: 1	0	0	1
	Belgium Total: 1	0	0	1
	Moldova Total: 1	0	0	1
	Norway Total: 1	0	0	1
	Ukraine Total: 1	0	0	1
	Uzbekistan Total: 1	0	0	1
	Serbia Total: 1	0	0	1
	Slovakia Total: 1	0	0	1
	Abkhazia Total: 0	0	0	0
	Afghanistan Total: 0	0	0	0
	Aland Total: 0	0	0	0
	Albania Total: 0	0	0	0
	Algeria Total: 0	0	0	0
	American Samoa Total: 0	0	0	0
	Andorra Total: 0	0	0	0
	Angola Total: 0	0	0	0
	Anguilla Total: 0	0	0	0
	Antigua and Barbuda Total: 0	0	0	0
	Argentina Total: 0	0	0	0
	Armenia Total: 0	0	0	0
	Aruba Total: 0	0	0	0
	Austria Total: 0	0	0	0
	Bahamas Total: 0	0	0	0
	Bahrain Total: 0	0	0	0
	Bangladesh Total: 0	0	0	0
	Barbados Total: 0	0	0	0
	Belarus Total: 0	0	0	0
	Belize Total: 0	0	0	0
	Benin Total: 0	0	0	0
	Bermuda Total: 0	0	0	0
	Bhutan Total: 0	0	0	0
	Bolivia Total: 0	0	0	0
	Bosnia and Herzegovina Total: 0	0	0	0
	Botswana Total: 0	0	0	0
	British Virgin Islands Total: 0	0	0	0
	Brunei Total: 0	0	0	0
	Bulgaria Total: 0	0	0	0
	Burkina Faso Total: 0	0	0	0
	Burundi Total: 0	0	0	0
	Cambodia Total: 0	0	0	0
	Cameroon Total: 0	0	0	0
	Cape Verde Total: 0	0	0	0
	Cayman Islands Total: 0	0	0	0
	Central African Republic Total: 0	0	0	0
	Chad Total: 0	0	0	0
	Chile Total: 0	0	0	0
	Comoros Total: 0	0	0	0
	Costa Rica Total: 0	0	0	0
	Cote d'Ivoire Total: 0	0	0	0
	Croatia Total: 0	0	0	0
	Cyprus Total: 0	0	0	0
	Czech Republic Total: 0	0	0	0
	Democratic Republic of the Congo Total: 0	0	0	0
	Denmark Total: 0	0	0	0
	Djibouti Total: 0	0	0	0
	Dominica Total: 0	0	0	0
	Dominican Republic Total: 0	0	0	0
	East Timor Total: 0	0	0	0
	Ecuador Total: 0	0	0	0
	Egypt Total: 0	0	0	0
	El Salvador Total: 0	0	0	0
	Equatorial Guinea Total: 0	0	0	0
	Eritrea Total: 0	0	0	0
	Estonia Total: 0	0	0	0
	Ethiopia Total: 0	0	0	0
	Falkland Islands Total: 0	0	0	0
	Faroes Total: 0	0	0	0
	Fiji Total: 0	0	0	0
	Finland Total: 0	0	0	0
	Gabon Total: 0	0	0	0
	Gambia Total: 0	0	0	0
	Germany Total: 0	0	0	0
	Ghana Total: 0	0	0	0
	Greece Total: 0	0	0	0
	Greenland Total: 0	0	0	0
	Grenada Total: 0	0	0	0
	Guam Total: 0	0	0	0
	Guatemala Total: 0	0	0	0
	Guernsey Total: 0	0	0	0
	Guinea Bissau Total: 0	0	0	0
	Guinea Total: 0	0	0	0
	Guyana Total: 0	0	0	0
	Haiti Total: 0	0	0	0
	Honduras Total: 0	0	0	0
	Hong Kong Total: 0	0	0	0
	Iceland Total: 0	0	0	0
	India Total: 0	0	0	0
	Indonesia Total: 0	0	0	0
	Iran Total: 0	0	0	0
	Iraq Total: 0	0	0	0
	Ireland Total: 0	0	0	0
	Isle of Man Total: 0	0	0	0
	Israel Total: 0	0	0	0
	Jamaica Total: 0	0	0	0
	Jersey Total: 0	0	0	0
	Jordan Total: 0	0	0	0
	Kenya Total: 0	0	0	0
	Kiribati Total: 0	0	0	0
	Kosovo Total: 0	0	0	0
	Kuwait Total: 0	0	0	0
	Kyrgyzstan Total: 0	0	0	0
	Laos Total: 0	0	0	0
	Latvia Total: 0	0	0	0
	Lebanon Total: 0	0	0	0
	Lesotho Total: 0	0	0	0
	Liberia Total: 0	0	0	0
	Libya Total: 0	0	0	0
	Liechtenstein Total: 0	0	0	0
	Lithuania Total: 0	0	0	0
	Luxembourg Total: 0	0	0	0
	Macau Total: 0	0	0	0
	Macedonia Total: 0	0	0	0
	Madagascar Total: 0	0	0	0
	Malawi Total: 0	0	0	0
	Malaysia Total: 0	0	0	0
	Maldives Total: 0	0	0	0
	Mali Total: 0	0	0	0
	Malta Total: 0	0	0	0
	Mars Total: 0	0	0	0
	Marshall Islands Total: 0	0	0	0
	Mauritania Total: 0	0	0	0
	Mauritius Total: 0	0	0	0
	Mexico Total: 0	0	0	0
	Micronesia Total: 0	0	0	0
	Monaco Total: 0	0	0	0
	Mongolia Total: 0	0	0	0
	Montenegro Total: 0	0	0	0
	Montserrat Total: 0	0	0	0
	Morocco Total: 0	0	0	0
	Mozambique Total: 0	0	0	0
	Myanmar Total: 0	0	0	0
	Nagorno Karabakh Total: 0	0	0	0
	Namibia Total: 0	0	0	0
	Nauru Total: 0	0	0	0
	Nepal Total: 0	0	0	0
	Netherlands Antilles Total: 0	0	0	0
	New Zealand Total: 0	0	0	0
	Nicaragua Total: 0	0	0	0
	Niger Total: 0	0	0	0
	Nigeria Total: 0	0	0	0
	Norfolk Island Total: 0	0	0	0
	North Cyprus Total: 0	0	0	0
	Northern Mariana Islands Total: 0	0	0	0
	Olympics Total: 0	0	0	0
	Oman Total: 0	0	0	0
	Pakistan Total: 0	0	0	0
	Palau Total: 0	0	0	0
	Palestine Total: 0	0	0	0
	Panama Total: 0	0	0	0
	Papua New Guinea Total: 0	0	0	0
	Paraguay Total: 0	0	0	0
	Peru Total: 0	0	0	0
	Philippines Total: 0	0	0	0
	Pitcairn Islands Total: 0	0	0	0
	Portugal Total: 0	0	0	0
	Puerto Rico Total: 0	0	0	0
	Qatar Total: 0	0	0	0
	Republic of the Congo Total: 0	0	0	0
	Rwanda Total: 0	0	0	0
	Saint Barthelemy Total: 0	0	0	0
	Saint Helena Total: 0	0	0	0
	Saint Kitts and Nevis Total: 0	0	0	0
	Saint Lucia Total: 0	0	0	0
	Saint Vincent and the Grenadines Total: 0	0	0	0
	Samoa Total: 0	0	0	0
	San Marino Total: 0	0	0	0
	Sao Tome and Principe Total: 0	0	0	0
	Saudi Arabia Total: 0	0	0	0
	Scotland Total: 0	0	0	0
	Senegal Total: 0	0	0	0
	Seychelles Total: 0	0	0	0
	Sierra Leone Total: 0	0	0	0
	Singapore Total: 0	0	0	0
	Slovenia Total: 0	0	0	0
	Solomon Islands Total: 0	0	0	0
	Somalia Total: 0	0	0	0
	Somaliland Total: 0	0	0	0
	South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands Total: 0	0	0	0
	South Ossetia Total: 0	0	0	0
	Spain Total: 0	0	0	0
	Sri Lanka Total: 0	0	0	0
	Sudan Total: 0	0	0	0
	Suriname Total: 0	0	0	0
	Swaziland Total: 0	0	0	0
	Sweden Total: 0	0	0	0
	Switzerland Total: 0	0	0	0
	Syria Total: 0	0	0	0
	Taiwan Total: 0	0	0	0
	Tajikistan Total: 0	0	0	0
	Tanzania Total: 0	0	0	0
	Thailand Total: 0	0	0	0
	Togo Total: 0	0	0	0
	Tonga Total: 0	0	0	0
	Trinidad and Tobago Total: 0	0	0	0
	Tunisia Total: 0	0	0	0
	Turkey Total: 0	0	0	0
	Turkmenistan Total: 0	0	0	0
	Turks and Caicos Islands Total: 0	0	0	0
	Tuvalu Total: 0	0	0	0
	Uganda Total: 0	0	0	0
	United Arab Emirates Total: 0	0	0	0
	United Nations Total: 0	0	0	0
	Uruguay Total: 0	0	0	0
	US Virgin Islands Total: 0	0	0	0
	Vanuatu Total: 0	0	0	0
	Vatican City Total: 0	0	0	0
	Venezuela Total: 0	0	0	0
	Vietnam Total: 0	0	0	0
	Wales Total: 0	0	0	0
	Western Sahara Total: 0	0	0	0
	World Total: 0	0	0	0
	Yemen Total: 0	0	0	0
	Zambia Total: 0	0	0	0
	Zimbabwe Total: 0	0	0	0

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