By Meredith B. Kile
1:55 PM PDT, August 8, 2021
The 2021 Tokyo Olympics have concluded -- and so has the gold medal hunt!
From swimming to sprinting, basketball to badminton, the Summer Games are home to some of the fiercest and most-watchable competition in all types of sports, and the best athletes in the world were ready to go in Tokyo, looking to prove their mettle with some take-home medals.
Team USA has led the final medal count in every Summer Olympics since 1996, and the American athletes excelled once again in Tokyo. Swimming star Katie Ledecky ruled the pool in the distance freestyle events, running stars like Sydney McLaughlin and Athing Mu were on track for new running records, and Team USA's talented basketball teams set out to reclaim Olympic glory on both the men's and women's side.
There were even new sports and events in competition this year, with the introduction of surfing, skateboarding, sport climbing and karate to the Olympic program, as well as added mixed team events in swimming, track and field, archery and more.
Check out the final medal count leaderboard below, and relive some of the biggest moments of the Games, as ET spotlights each of Team USA's gold medalists.
FINAL MEDAL COUNT LEADERS (updated Aug. 8 at 2:00 p.m. PT):
- United States of America - 113 total (39 gold / 41 silver / 33 bronze)
- People's Republic of China - 88 total (38 gold / 32 silver / 18 bronze)
- ROC - 71 total (20 gold / 28 silver / 23 bronze)
- Great Britain - 65 total (22 gold / 21 silver / 22 bronze)
- Japan - 58 total (27 gold / 14 silver / 17 bronze)
The 2021 Tokyo Olympics run from July 21 to Aug. 8, and will be broadcast on NBC, NBCOlympics.com, on the NBC Sports app, and on Peacock, NBCUniversal's streaming service. In the meantime, stay tuned to ETonline.com for complete Olympics coverage.
Women's Volleyball
Clinching the first-ever gold for Team USA in indoor volleyball, the American women beat Brazil in straight sets for an emotional victory and the final gold medal of the Tokyo Games on Sunday, Aug. 8.
Jennifer Valente - Cycling
Despite a crash on her final day of sprints, Valente, a 26-year-old San Diego, California, native, won Team USA's first-ever gold in women's track cycling with her victory in the omnium on Sunday, Aug. 8.
Women's Basketball
Concluding a dominant run with a 90-75 victory over Japan, Team USA clinched its seventh consecutive gold medal in women's basketball on Sunday, Aug. 8, with five apiece for WNBA legends Sue Bird and Diana Taurasi.
Men's Basketball
Team USA's all-star squad, which included NBA standouts like Kevin Durant, Damian Lillard, Devin Booker and more, got the job done in Tokyo, beating out France 87-82 in the gold medal game on Saturday, Aug. 7.
Women's Water Polo
Behind dominant play from captain Maggie Steffans -- who became the all-time leading female scorer in Olympic history -- and goalkeeper Ashleigh Johnson, the women's water polo team captured their third gold medal in a row on the women's side, beating out Spain 14-5 in the gold medal match.
Men's 4x400m Relay - Track & Field
While the American men failed to medal in the 400m individual event, the team of Bryce Deadmon, Michael Cherry, Michael Norman and Rai Benjamin followed up their female counterparts to bring home gold in the 4x400m relay on Saturday, Aug. 7.
Women's 4x400m Relay - Track & Field
Four of Team USA's track superstars came together to add to their medal collection at the close of the Tokyo Games, as Allyson Felix, Dalilah Muhammah, Athing Mu and Sydney McLaughlin closed out the track events with a win on the 4x400m relay -- which also made Felix Team USA's most decorated track athlete of all time.
Nelly Korda - Golf
Korda, a 23-year-old Bradenton, Florida, native, completed Team USA's sweep of the individual golf events with her gold medal performance on the women's side on Saturday, Aug. 7.
Gable Steveson - Wrestling
The men's freestyle 125kg gold medal match came down to the last second, with Steveson, a 21-year-old Apple Valley, Minnesota, native, eking out the win in spectacular fashion -- and celebrating with a signature backflip.
Alix Klineman & April Ross - Beach Volleyball
The dominant beach volleyball duo went undefeated on their way to the win, returning Team USA to the top of the podium, and completing Ross' medal collection -- which already included a silver from 2012 in London and a bronze from 2016 in Rio -- with a gold.
David Taylor - Wrestling
The 30-year-old Reno, Nevada, native, nicknamed "The Magic Man," found gold on the mat on Thursday, Aug. 5, winning the men's freestyle 86kg competition.
Nevin Harrison - Canoe
Just 19 years old, Harrison, a Seattle native, made history on Thursday, Aug. 5, winning the first-ever gold medal awarded for women's single 200m canoe sprint.
Katie Nageotte - Track & Field
Nageotte, a 30-year-old Olmstead Falls, Ohio, native, became just the third American woman ever to take gold in the pole vault when she cleared 4.90m for the win on Thursday, Aug. 5.
Ryan Crouser - Track & Field
Crouser, a 28-year-old from Portland, Oregon, broke his own Olympic record five times en route to his second consecutive gold medal in the shot put on Thursday, Aug. 5.
Sydney McLaughlin - Track & Field
McLaughlin's highly anticipated Tokyo showdown with fellow Team USA hurdler -- and defending gold medalist -- Dalilah Muhammad was as thrilling as advertised. The pair, who have traded records and wins in recent years, went 1-2 in the 400m hurdles, both breaking the 52-second mark and the world record, though it was McLaughlin who took gold, with a time of 51.46.
Tamyra Mensah-Stock - Wrestling
Mensah-Stock, a 28-year-old Chicago native, made Olympics history for Team USA when she won the 68kg category on Tuesday, Aug. 3, becoming the first Black American woman ever to win wrestling gold.
Athing Mu - Track & Field
The 19-year-old from Trenton, New Jersey, became the first American woman to take gold in the 800m since 1968.
Valarie Allman - Track & Field
Allman won Team USA's first track & field gold medal of the Tokyo Games on Monday, Aug. 2. The 26-year-old Newark, Deleware, native threw 68.98m to take gold in the women's discus.
Jade Carey - Gymnastics
The Team USA gymnastics gold came courtesy of Carey, a 21-year-old Phoenix, Arizona, native, who performed what she called “the best floor routine I’ve ever done in my life" to win the individual event on Monday, Aug. 2.
Caeleb Dressel - Swimming
Dressel got his first individual Olympic gold on Thursday, July 29, winning the men's 100m freestyle with a new Olympic record. The Florida native didn't stop there, taking gold in the 50m freestyle and 100m butterfly, as well as the men's 4x100m freestyle relay and 4x100m medley relay.
Xander Schauffele - Golf
The 27-year-old San Diego native earned one of the more surprising gold medals at the Tokyo Games, becoming the first American man to win individual golf gold since 1900!
Men's 4x100m Medley Relay - Swimming
The team of Ryan Murphy, Michael Andrew, Caeleb Dressel and Zach Apple finished off the swimming portion of the Tokyo Olympics strong, taking one last gold for Team USA in the 4x100m medley relay, and setting a new world record in the process.
Sunisa Lee - Gymnastics
Lee became the fifth consecutive American woman to win the all-around individual gymnastics gold on Thursday, July 29, following Simone Biles' surprising withdrawal from the team competition and all-around. And there may be more medals ahead for the 18-year-old St. Paul, Minnesota, native -- who won silver in the team competition as well -- in the individual events, where she is a favorite for gold on her specialty, the uneven bars.
Bobby Finke - Swimming
The Tokyo Olympics saw the first-ever men's 800m freestyle, and the event didn't disappoint, coming down to an all-out sprint between the top three swimmers. It was Finke at the wall, as the 21-year-old Florida native made a final lap comeback, making up more than a second in the final lap to touch out his competitors for an historic gold. He followed it up a few days later with a win in the 1500m freestyle, completing the American sweep of the distance freestyle events.
Women's 3x3 Basketball
The team of Jacquelyn Young, Kelsey Plum, Stefanie Dolson, and Allisha Gray made history at the Tokyo Games on Wednesday, July 28, winning the first-ever gold medal in another debuting event, women's 3x3 basketball.
Katie Ledecky - Swimming
While Ledecky lost out on defending her gold medals in the 200m and 400m freestyle, she made Olympics history of another kind on Wednesday, July 28. The 24-year-old Maryland native became the first-ever gold medalist in the women's 1500m freestyle, a brand-new event in Tokyo. She followed it up a few days later with her third consecutive gold medal in the 800m freestyle.
Carissa Moore - Surfing
The 28-year-old Honolulu, Hawaii, native became the first-ever women's surfing gold medalist in Olympics history, winning the inaugural event on Tuesday, July 27.
Lydia Jacoby - Swimming
While returning Olympic champion Lilly King had the spotlight on her in the women's 100m breaststroke, it was her teammate, 17-year-old Jacoby -- the first-ever Olympic swimmer from Alaska -- who shocked the field with her gold medal swim on Tuesday, July 27.
Vincent Hancock - Shooting
The 32-year-old sharpshooter from Fort Worth, Texas, completed the Team USA skeet sweep with his third Olympic gold in the men's skeet event on Monday, July 26.
Amber English - Shooting
The 31-year-old Colorado Springs native won gold and set a new Olympic record in the women's skeet event on Monday, July 26.
Men's 4x100m Freestyle Relay - Swimming
Caeleb Dressel, Blake Pieroni, Bowen Becker and Zach Apple continued Team USA's dominance in the freestyle relay with a gold medal win over the Italian team on Monday, July 26.
Anastasija Zolotic - Taekwondo
18-year-old Zolotic, a Largo, Florida, native, became the first American woman ever to win taekwondo gold at the Olympics when she defeated Russia's Tatyana Minina in the gold medal -57kg match on Sunday, July 25.
Lee Kiefer - Fencing
Kiefer, a 27-year-old Cleveland, Ohio, native, made Olympics history of her own when she became the first American, man or woman, to win individual foil gold with her victory on Sunday, July 25.
William Shaner - Shooting
The 20-year-old Colorado Springs native won gold in the men's 10m air rifle shooting event on Sunday, July 25.
Chase Kalisz - Swimming
The swimmer, a 27-year-old native of Bel Air, Maryland, became the first gold medalist for Team USA when he won the 400m individual medley on Saturday, July 24.