Olympic 2016 Medal Count: Updates on Friday's Medal Standings for Each Nation
Team USA looked to continue its dominance in the medal standings Friday at the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio de Janeiro, entering Day 19 of the competition with 100 medals to its credit and a huge lead over second place.
While the United States' advantage is essentially insurmountable, other nations had the opportunity to close the gap to some degree, as medals were handed out in several different sports, including badminton, water polo, synchronized swimming, field hockey, soccer, equestrian, cycling, boxing, wrestling, taekwondo and athletics.
Here is a look at where the overall medal count currently stands, along with a recap of each medal event from Friday's slate of action:
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Men's Race Walking
| Gold | Matej Toth | Slovakia | 3:40.58 |
| Silver | Jared Tallent | Australia | 3:41.16 |
| Bronze | Hirooki Arai | Japan | 3:41.24 |
Australia's Jared Tallent was denied his second consecutive gold medal in the men's 50-kilometer race walk Friday in Rio de Janeiro, as Matej Toth of Slovakia added Olympic gold to his 2015 World Championship triumph.
John Duggan of Today FM in Ireland tweeted a photo of Toth's celebration and made mention of the difficult conditions:
Among those adversely impacted by the heat was world-record holder Yohann Diniz of France, who appeared to pass out at one point before bouncing back to finish eighth.
Tallent settled for silver, but he became one of the most decorated Olympic race walkers ever in the process after winning gold four years ago in London and silver at the 2008 Beijing Games.
The race for bronze between Japan's Hirooki Arai and Canada's Evan Dunfee was among the most entertaining aspects of the event.
Dunfee actually passed Arai temporarily with a little over a kilometer remaining, but Arai bumped past him, knocked him off stride and managed to hang on for bronze.
Women's Badminton
| Gold Medal | Silver Medal | Score |
| Carolina Marin (ESP) | V. Sindhu Pusarla (IND) | 19-21, 21-12, 21-15 |
| Bronze Medal | 4th Place | Score |
| Nozomi Okuhara (JPN) | Li Xuerui (CHN) | W/O |
Friday was a day of firsts in women's badminton, as Carolina Marin defeated India's V. Sindhu Pusarla in three sets to win Spain's first-ever Olympic gold medal in badminton.
In fact, Spain had never won a medal of any kind in badminton prior to Marin's victory. Following her hard-fought triumph, Indian badminton Olympian Gutta Jwala praised the new champion:
Even in a losing effort, Pusarla made history as well by winning India's second Olympic medal in badminton and its first-ever silver.
The bronze-medal match never occurred, as China's Li Xuerui was forced to withdraw after injuring her knee in a semifinal loss. That gave Nozomi Okuhara the bronze and Japan's first Olympic medal in women's singles badminton.
By virtue of the walkover, China did not medal in women's singles badminton for the first time since the 1996 Atlanta Olympics.
Prior to Friday, China had won at least two medals in every Olympic women's singles competition since getting shut out in Atlanta.
Synchronized Swimming
| Gold | Russia | 196.1439 |
| Silver | China | 192.9841 |
| Bronze | Japan | 189.2056 |
Russia's synchronized swimming dominance continued Friday at the 2016 Rio Games, as it won gold in the team event for the fifth consecutive Olympics.
The Russians beat out China, which won silver for the second straight Summer Games, as well as Japan, which returned to the podium with a bronze after missing out in 2008 and 2012.
Since the United States won synchronized swimming gold the first time it was contested as a team event at the 1996 Atlanta Olympics, Russia has won every gold medal.
Juliet Macur tweeted the following photo of Friday's event and praised it for being a spectacle of sorts:
While Russia, China and Japan have been perennial powers in team synchronized swimming, there was a changing of the guard to some degree Friday.
Spain medaled in the event at both the 2008 and 2012 Olympics, but it did not field a team in Rio de Janeiro.
Men's Badminton
| Gold Medal | Silver Medal | Score |
| Fu Haifeng/Zhang Nan (CHN) | Goh V Shem/Tan Wee Kiong (MAS) | 16-21, 21-11, 23-21 |
| Bronze Medal | 4th Place | Score |
| Marcus Ellis/Chris Langridge (GBR) | Chai Biao/Hong Wei (CHN) | 21-18, 19-21, 21-10 |
China repeated as the Olympic gold medalist in men's doubles badminton Friday, as the duo of Fu Haifeng and Zhang Nan defeated Malaysia's Goh V Shem and Tan Wee Kiong in an exciting, three-set affair.
Malaysia was denied its first-ever gold in Olympic badminton, while both Fu and Zhang became three-time Olympic medalists by virtue of the victory.
Fu is now a two-time defending gold medalist in men's doubles, while Zhang's two previous medals came in mixed doubles, including a bronze in Rio de Janeiro.
Despite Malaysia's loss, Malaysian squash star Wee Wern Low expressed great pride in the performance of the silver medal winners:
The bronze-medal match took place Thursday, and it was historic in nature as Marcus Ellis and Chris Langridge became the first British tandem to win a Olympic medal in men's doubles.
After winning the first set, the Brits seized momentum to China's Chai Biao and Hong Wei by dropping the second, but Ellis and Langridge rebounded in the third set and took it in blowout fashion to win bronze.
Equestrian
| Gold | Nick Skelton | Big Star | Great Britain | 0 | 0 |
| Silver | Peder Fredricson | All In | Sweden | 0 | 0 |
| Bronze | Eric Lamaze | Fine Lady 5 | Canada | 0 | 4 |
Great Britain's Nick Skelton became a two-time Olympic gold medalist Friday in Rio de Janeiro, as he endured a six-person jump-off to top the podium in equestrian individual jumping.
Skelton took gold at 58 years of age, which made him the oldest British Olympic medalist since the infancy of the Games, according to Gordon Rayner of the Daily Telegraph:
For Skelton, Friday's win also represented his first individual Olympic gold, as his previous gold medal came in team jumping four years ago.
Sweden took silver in the event for the second straight Olympics, as Peder Fredricson tied Skelton in the jump-off but lost out on gold due to the time tiebreaker.
Canada's Eric Lamaze rounded out the podium with bronze, which gave him one Olympic medal of every color in his career and made him the most decorated equestrian athlete in Canadian Olympic history.
Women's Race Walking
| Gold | Liu Hong | China | 1:28.35 |
| Silver | María Guadalupe Gonzalez | Mexico | 1:28.37 |
| Bronze | Lü Xiuzhi | China | 1:28.42 |
China won the first gold medal in women's 20-kilometer race walking at the 2000 Olympics in Sydney, and it captured its second 16 years later when Liu Hong bested the competition by fractional seconds to take home the title.
María Guadalupe Gonzalez of Mexico nearly stole gold from Hong, but she was 0.02 seconds too slow and brought home Mexico's second medal in the event dating back to 2000.
China's Lu Xiuzhi rounded out the podium with a bronze-medal effort. The gold-bronze finish represented the first time in the women's 20-meter race walk that China came away with two or more medals.
Women's Water Polo
| Gold | United States | 12-5 |
| Silver | Italy | ----- |
| Bronze | Russia | 19-18 |
The United States women's water polo team asserted its dominance in the pool throughout preliminaries and the early stages of the knockout rounds, and it did so again Friday with a magnificent performance in the gold-medal game.
The Stars and Stripes bested Italy, 12-5, behind three goals on four shots from Kiley Neushul. Makenzie Fischer added two goals on five shots, while Rachel Fattal did just the same.
The win marked the culmination of a successful gold medal defense for the Americans, who took down Spain to win gold in London. Overall, the U.S. women now own two golds, two silvers and a bronze in water polo.
In bronze-medal action, Russia captured its second bronze in women's water polo in a 19-18 thriller over a pesky Hungarian side.
Women's Field Hockey
| Gold | Great Britain | 3-3 (2-0) |
| Silver | Netherlands | ----- |
| Bronze | Germany | 2-1 |
Great Britain added to its impressive medal count on Friday afternoon with a field hockey gold thanks to a penalty shootout win over the Netherlands.
After playing to a 3-3 draw in regulation, Great Britain won the shootout 2-0 thanks to a stellar showing from goalie Maddie Hinch.
Britain won bronze at the 1992 and 2012 Olympics, but Friday's win gave the country its first-ever gold in the sport.
Germany, meanwhile, recorded a narrow 2-1 win over New Zealand to take home bronze. The 2004 gold medalists have now captured hardware on four separate occasions in women's field hockey.
Men's Wrestling
| Gold | Vladimer Khinchegashvili | Georgia |
| Silver | Rei Higuchi | Japan |
| Bronze | Haji Aliyev | Azerbaijan |
| Bronze | Hassan Rahimi | Iran |
Georgia's Vladimer Khinchegashvili took home the freestyle 57-kilogram wrestling crown over Japan's Rei Higuchi on Friday with a decisive 3-1 victory.
Khinchegashvili won silver at the 2012 Olympics in London, but he couldn't best Russia's Dzhamal Otarsultanov in the event final.
Bronze medals were handed out to Iran's Hassan Rahimi and Azerbaijan's Haji Aliyev. Iran now owns three bronze medals and one gold medal in wrestling at the 2016 Olympics.
| Gold | Hassan Yazdani | Iran |
| Silver | Aniuar Geduev | Russia |
| Bronze | Jabrayil Hasanov | Azerbaijan |
| Bronze | Soner Demirtaş | Turkey |
In 74-kilogram action, Iran's Hassan Yazdani imposed his physical will on Russia's Aniuar Geduev in a 3-1 win to take home gold.
It was a bloody affair after a cut opened above Geduev's eyes that required attention, but Yazdani hung tough and bested the Russian for a monumental gold.
Men's Cycling: BMX
| Gold | Connor Fields | United States | 34.64 |
| Silver | Jelle van Gorkom | Netherlands | 35.31 |
| Bronze | Carlos Ramirez | Colombia | 35.51 |
American Connor Fields blitzed the competition in the men's BMX individual final on Friday to take home gold and pad the United States' medal count with another first-place honor.
Fields finished in a time of 34.64 seconds, while Jelle van Gorkom of the Netherlands clocked in at 35.31 seconds to secure silver.
“There was kind of a point where I exited the last corner and realized I was winning,” Fields said, per the Associated Press (via the Los Angeles Times). “I was like, 'Get to the line! Get to the line!' I crossed that finish line and dropped to my knees. I couldn't believe it.”
Carlos Ramirez of Colombia was good enough for bronze with a final time of 35.51 seconds.
Women's Cycling: BMX
| Gold | Mariana Pajon | Colombia | 34.09 |
| Silver | Alise Post | United States | 34.43 |
| Bronze | Stefany Hernandez | Venezuela | 34.75 |
Colombia's Mariana Pajon is officially the queen of BMX cycling.
After securing gold at the 2012 Olympics in London, Pajon held off a fierce charge from the United States' Alise Post to successfully defend her status as the world's premier BMX biker.
“My first gold was huge," Pajon said, per the Associated Press (via the Los Angeles Times). "But two is amazing."
Stefany Hernandez of Venezuela finished in 34.75 seconds, which was plenty good enough to secure the bronze medal ahead of fourth-place finisher Brooke Crain of the U.S.
Women's Pentathlon
| Gold | Chloe Esposito | Australia | 1,372 |
| Silver | Elodie Clouvel | France | 1,356 |
| Bronze | Oktawia Nowacka | Poland | 1,349 |
Australia's Chloe Esposito entered the history books on Friday when she completed the women's pentathlon with an Olympic-record 1,372 points.
France's Elodie Clouvel tallied 1,356 points to take home silver, while Poland's Oktawia Nowacka—who won the fencing stage by a decisive 20-point margin—finished with bronze at 1,349 points overall.
Russia's Gulnaz Gubaydullina was also deserving of praise after she posted an Olympic-record 317 points during the swimming stage of the grueling competition.
Women's Boxing
| Gold | Estelle Mossely | France |
| Silver | Yin Junhua | China |
| Bronze | Mira Potkonen | Finland |
| Bronze | Anastasia Belyakova | Russia |
France has a new boxing star, and her name is Estelle Mossely.
The 24-year-old broke through for a gold medal on Friday afternoon with a narrow split-points decision victory over China's Yin Junhua in the 60-kilogram division.
Finland's Mira Potkonen and Russia's Anastasia Belyakova both secured bronze medals after failing to solidify spots in the event final.
Women's Soccer
| Gold | Germany |
| Silver | Sweden |
| Bronze | Canada |
The women of Germany are Olympic champions of the soccer world after defeating an upstart Swedish team 2-1 on Friday evening.
Dzsenifer Marozsan got the party started for Germany with the game's opening tally in the 42nd minute, and an own goal from Sweden in the 62nd minute was all the cushion the champions needs.
Sweden struck back to pull within one goal of the lead thanks to a strike from Stina Blackstenius in the 67th minute, but it wasn't enough as Germany effectively held down the fort throughout the match's final 20 minutes and maintained an edge.
In the bronze medal match, Canada deprived Brazil of capturing a medal on its home turf thanks to a 2-1 win on the backs of Deanne Rose Christine Sinclair.
Germany will go for a sweep of soccer gold on Saturday when it squares off against Brazil on the men's side at the Maracana.
Men's Hammer Throw
| Gold | Dilshod Nazarov | Tajikistan | 78.68 |
| Silver | Ivan Tsikhan | Belarus | 77.79 |
| Bronze | Wojciech Nowicki | Poland | 77.73 |
It was a historic night for Tajikistan, as Dilshod Nazarov won the men's hammer throw with a final distance of 78.68 meters to take home his country's first Olympic gold medal.
Nazarov led after one round and watched that edge slip away fairly quickly, but he struck back in the third stanza and moved into the top position after silver medalist Ivan Tsikhan of Belarus temporarily took the lead.
Poland's Wojciech Nowicki walked away with bronze despite a stiff challenge from Mexico's Diego Del Real.
Men's Taekwondo
| Gold | Cheick Sallah Cissé | Ivory Coast |
| Silver | Lutalo Muhammad | Great Britain |
| Bronze | Milad Beigi Harchegani | Azerbaijan |
| Bronze | Oussama Oueslati | Tunisia |
Men's 80-kilogram taekwondo action unfolded Friday night in Rio, and the Ivory Coast's Cheick Sallah Cissé scrapped and clawed his way to an 8-6 victory over Great Britain's Lutalo Muhammad to capture gold in the primetime showdown.
While the gold-medal match came down to the wire, bronze-medal action wasn't nearly as contested.
Azerbaijan's Milad Beigi Harchegani blanked Poland's Piotr Paziński for a decisive 12-0 win, while Oussama Oueslati won bronze with a 14-5 win over the United States' Steven Lopez.
Women's Taekwondo
| Gold | Oh Hye-Ri | South Korea |
| Silver | Haby Niare | France |
| Bronze | Ruth Gbagbi | Ivory Coast |
| Bronze | Nur Tatar | Turkey |
The evening's taekwondo action concluded with the women's 67-kilogram podium bouts, and the gold-medal action proved to be as thrilling as it was in the men's 80-kilogram final.
South Korea's Oh Hye-Ri secured a slim 13-12 win over France's Haby Niare despite a late flurry from the French challenger, and she etched her name into the Olympic record books with the thrilling victory.
The Ivory Coast's Ruth Gbagbi and Turkey's Nur Tatar padded their countries' medal counts with bronze-medal wins.
Women's Pole Vault
| Gold | Ekateríni Stefanídi | Greece | 4.85 |
| Silver | Sandi Morris | United States | 4.85 |
| Bronze | Eliza McCartney | New Zealand | 4.80 |
Jennifer Suhr's reign atop the pole vaulting world ended Friday night when the 2012 Olympic gold medalist finished seventh in the women's pole vaulting final.
But while Suhr struggled as she battled an illness, Greece's Ekateríni Stefanídi seized a golden opportunity and cleared a height of 4.85 meters to take home her first Olympic gold.
American Sandi Morris also had a coming out party as she vaulted her way to second place and a silver medal after just barely nicking the bar on her gold-medal attempt of 4.90 meters that could have served as a stunner.
The bronze went to New Zealand's Eliza McCartney, who was brilliant through her first few attempts before she was befuddled by the 4.85-meter bar.
Women's 5,000 Meters
| Gold | Vivian Cheruiyot | Kenya | 14:26.17 |
| Silver | Hellen Onsando Obiri | Kenya | 14:29.77 |
| Bronze | Almaz Ayana | Ethiopia | 14:33.59 |
Ethiopia has historically dominated the women's 5,000-meters, but Kenya was the nation to beat on Friday as Vivian Cheruiyot set an Olympic record with a run of 14 minutes, 26.17 seconds. Cheruiyot's victory also represented the first for any Ethiopian woman in the 5,000 meters.
Joining Cheruiyot on the podium was compatriot Hellen Onsando Obiri, who gave Kenya a one-two finish when she crossed the finish line and secured a silver medal.
Ethiopia didn't leave without a bit of hardware, though.
Although it wasn't a banner evening for the Ethiopians, heralded distance runner Almaz Ayana did enough to take home bronze.
Women's 4x100-Meter Relay
| Gold | United States | 41.01 |
| Silver | Jamaica | 41.36 |
| Bronze | Great Britain | 41.77 |
The United States appeared in the women's 4x100-meter relay on Friday night following a successful appeal that was spawned by a dropped baton in heats, and the Stars and Stripes made history running out of lane No. 1.
Although they weren't in a lane conducive to stellar performances, the U.S. came dangerously close to breaking the world record it set four years ago when 100-meter silver medallist Tori Bowie bolted for home past Jamaica's Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce.
The win also thrust Allyson Felix into rare air after she helped set the tone on the second leg of the relay:
Jamaica brought home silver thanks to Fraser-Pryce and Elaine Thompson, while Great Britain was good enough for bronze.
Men's 4x100-Meter Relay
| Gold | Jamaica | 37.27 |
| Silver | Japan | 37.60 |
| Bronze | Canada | 37.64 |
Usain Bolt completed his triple-triple on Friday night as Jamaica sprinted past Japan and the United States to capture gold in the men's 4x100-meter relay.
Bolt, who is slated to call it quits after the 2016 Olympics, is now a perfect 9-for-9 in the 100-meter dash, 200-meter dash and 4x100-meter relay dating back to 2008:
“I am just relieved," Bolt said, per the New York Times' Victor Mather. "It’s happened. I am just happy, proud of myself. It’s come true. The pressure is real. I look at it as an accomplishment."
In more controversial news, the United States was stripped of its bronze-medal status shortly after the conclusion of the race after it was determined by the judges that Justin Rogers and Justin Gatlin passed the baton outside of the legal exchange zone.
U.S. Track and Field filed for appeal and is expecting a ruling on Saturday morning, according to the organization's official Twitter account.
For the time being, Japan is slotted into the silver-medal spot, while Canada took home bronze after initially finishing fourth.
Follow @MikeChiari on Twitter.
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