Editor at Large Louise Evans crunches the numbers to determine how Australia’s medal tally is tracking at halftime in the Paris Olympics.
We’re half way through the Olympics and Australia is on course to win a predicted 18 golds with 12 already in the green and gold medal bag.
Before the start of the Games, Sportshounds experts Louise Evans and Mike Osborne, who have covered seven Olympics each, predicted Australia could once again finish in the world top five with about 18 gold medals and 60 medals in total.
At the halfway mark Australia has 12 gold, 31 medals overall and is sitting fourth on the medal table.
What’s more, there are another six gold medal chances beckoning over the next seven days of competition and they are all in Australia’s favourite water and wheel sports.
The likely gold medals to come are in canoe sprint, sailing, surfing, diving, skateboard and cycling. Those six gold are based on form and ranking and don’t factor in any surprises.
Overall there could be about 15 more silver and bronze medals in athletics (4), waterpolo (2), track cycling (2), basketball (1), boxing (2), beach volleyball (1), weightlifting (1), and skateboard (2).
Doing the math, with 12 golds and 31 medals in the bag so far there’s another six gold plus 15 other medals to come making a grand total of – drum roll – 18 gold and 52 overall by the close of the Olympics on Sunday.
World top 5 on the medal table for Australia is within sight – but why is that important?
At the Tokyo Olympics Australia finished sixth in the world with 17 gold, seven silver and 22 bronze for a total of 46 medals. In Rio 2016 and London 2012 Australia was eighth with eight golds at each Games, Beijing 2008 fifth with 14 gold, Athens 2004 was fourth with 17 gold and Sydney 2000 was also fourth with 16 gold.
So Australia has finished in the world top eight at the past six Olympics over the previous 24 years with between eight and 17 gold medals. That’s the bench mark. Paris is looking on par.
The surprises so far have been in equestrian with Chris Burton winning eventing individual silver and the 36-year-old doubles pair of Matt Ebden and John Peers winning tennis gold.
Not surprisingly, Australia’s sportswomen and swimmers have won the lion’s share of the medals.
Of the 12 gold so far, seven have come from swimming and 10 have been won by women. The two men to win gold are swimmer Cameron McEvoy and tennis duo Ebden and Peers.
The stars of the Australian team so far are four women who have won multiple gold.
Kaylee McKeown (5 medals) – two individual gold 100m and 200m backstroke, one relay silver 4x100m medley, one individual bronze 200m individual medley, one relay bronze mixed medley 4x100m.
Ariarne Titmus (4) – one individual gold 400m freestyle, two individual silvers 200m and 800m freestyle, one relay gold 4x200m.
Mollie O’Callaghan (5) – one individual gold 200m freestyle, two relay gold 4x100m and 4x200m, one relay silver 4×100 medley, one relay bronze mixed medley 4x100m.
Jessica Fox (2) – two individual gold in canoe slalom and kayak slalom.
Australia’s medal-winning run in Paris (so far) Gold 12 | Silver 11 | Bronze 8 = Overall 31
Day One July 27 = 3 gold & 2 silver | gold Grace Brown cycling individual time trial | gold Arirane Titmus 400m freestyle | gold women’s 4x100m freestyle relay | silver Elijah Winnington 400m freestyle | silver men’s 4x100m freestyle relay.
Day Two July 28 = 1 gold | gold Jessica Fox kayak canoe slalom
Day Three July 29 = 1 gold & 2 silver | gold Mollie O’Callaghan 200m freestyle | silver Ariarne Titmus 200m freestyle | silver Chris Burton equestrian individual eventing.
Day Four July 30 = 1 gold & 1 bronze | gold Kaylee McKeown 100m backstroke | bronze men’s 4x200m freestyle relay.
Day Five July 31 = 1 gold & 2 silver & 1 bronze | gold Jessica Fox canoe slalom | silver Kyle Chalmers 100m freestyle | silver 200m Breastroke Zac Stubblety-Cook | bronze Natalya Diehm BMX freestyle | bronze Penny Smith trap shooting
Day Six August 1 = 1 gold & 1 bronze | gold women’s 4x200m freestyle | bronze Jemima Montag 20km walk.
Day Seven August 2 = 3 gold & 1 bronze | gold Cameron McEvoy 50m freestyle | gold Kaylee McKeown 200m backstroke | gold Saya Sakakibara BMX Racing | bronze Jess Morrison and Annabelle McIntyre rowing pair.
Day Eight August 3 = 1 gold & 2 silver & 2 bronze | gold Matt Ebden and John Peers tennis doubles | silver Ariarne Titmus 800m freestyle | silver Grae Morris windsurfing | bronze Kaylee McKeown 200m backstroke | bronze 4x100m mixed medley.
Day Nine August 4 = 3 silver & 1 bronze | silver Nicola Olyslayers high jump | silver Meg Harris 50m freestyle | silver women’s 4×100 medley relay | bronze Eleanor Patterson high jump.
| Athlete | Sport | Number | Gold Medals | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mollie O’Callaghan | Swimming | 3 | W 200 freestyle W 4×100 freestyle relay W 4×200 freestyle relay | |
| Jess Fox | Canoe/kayak | 2 | Kayak Slalom Canoe Slalom | |
| Kaylee McKeown | Swimming | 2 | W 100 backstroke W 200 backstroke | |
| Ariarne Titmus | Swimming | 2 | 400 freestyle 4×200 freestyle relay | |
| Grace Brown | Cycling | 1 | W Time Trial | |
| Shayna Jack | Swimming | 1 | W 4×100 freestyle relay | |
| Emma McKeon | Swimming | 1 | W 4×100 freestyle relay | |
| Meg Harris | Swimming | 1 | W 4×100 freestyle relay | |
| Lani Pallister | Swimming | 1 | W 4×200 freestyle relay | |
| Brianna Throssell | Swimming | 1 | W 4×200 freestyle relay | |
| Cam McEvoy | Swimming | 1 | M 50 freestyle | |
| Matt Ebden | Tennis | 1 | M Doubles | |
| John Peers | Tennis | 1 | M Doubles | |
| Noemie Fox | Canoe/Kayak | 1 | W Kayak Cross | |
| Arisa Trew | Skateboard | 1 | W Skateboard Park | |
| Matt Wearn | Sailing | 1 | M Laser Dinghy | |
| Keegan Palmer | Skateboard | 1 | M Skateboard Park | |
| Oliver Bleddyn | Cycling | 1 | M Team Pursuit | |
| Kelland O’Brien | Cycling | 1 | M Team Pursuit | |
| Sam Welsford | Cycling | 1 | M Team Pursuit | |
| Conor Leahy | Cycling | 1 | M Team Pursuit | |
| Nina Kennedy | Athletics | 1 | W Pole Vault |
Louise Evans is an award-winning journalist who has worked around Australia and the world as a reporter, foreign correspondent, editor and media executive for media platforms including The Sydney Morning Herald (eight years), The Australian (11 years) and Australian Associated Press (six years in London, Beijing and Sydney).
A women sports’ pioneer, Louise was the first female sports journalist employed by The Sydney Morning Herald and the first female sports editor at The Australian. Louise went on to work at six Olympic Games, six Commonwealth Games and numerous world sporting championships and grand slam tennis events.
Louise is the Founding Editor of AAP FactCheck, the Creator of #WISPAA – Women in Sport Photo Action Awards and national touring Exhibition and the author and producer of the Passage to Pusan book, documentary and exhibition.
In 2019 she was awarded the Order of Australia Medal (OAM) Queen’s Honour for services to the media and sport and named an Australian Financial Review Top 100 Woman of Influence for services to the arts, culture and sport.
In 2020 she won a NSW Volunteer of the Year Award plus the NSW Government Community Service Award for her women-in-sport advocacy work.
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