In the aftermath of the Beijing Olympics, much was made of China’s powerhouse sports status. In the medal count, China topped the field with 51 gold (to the runner-up USA’s 36) and 100 overall (second only to the USA’s 110.
Russia was a distant third with 72 medals.
But the medal haul of Russia plus surrounding countries that used to comprise the old Soviet Union – including Ukraine (27) Belarus (19) and Kazakhstan (13), among others – would have given the old USSR 161 medals.