Why is Team USA behind in the Olympic gold-medal count? Look to the pool

NANTERRE, France — The first bars of “The Star-Spangled Banner” played at 10:22 p.m. on Wednesday night, as the American flag flew and Katie Ledecky sang along.

It was the first time in three days that this particular anthem played at Paris La Défense Arena, home to the Olympic swimming competition. This one was a lock, because it was the women’s 1500-meter freestyle, and Ledecky has swum the 20 fastest times in this event in history. But it still felt cathartic for thousands of Americans in the stands, and it clearly meant a lot to Ledecky herself, who slammed a fist into the water and roared.

Ledecky’s gold was just the third gold medal by American swimmers through five nights of competition. For reference, the 22-year-old Frenchman Léon Marchand has captured three Olympic gold medals himself. The Australians lead with four gold medals in the pool and are favored to add another gold Thursday night in the women’s 4×200-meter freestyle relay. Though the U.S. has earned 17 total medals in the pool — seven more than Australia — most aren’t golden. And that is a strange place to be for Team USA, which has won more swimming gold medals than its peers in every Olympics from 1992 onward.

China leads all nations with 11 gold medals in the overall count, followed by France and Japan with eight apiece. The U.S. ranks fifth with six (three in swimming, one in gymnastics, one in fencing and one in rowing). And if you want to know why the Americans are so far down in the medal table, look to the pool.

In Tokyo, the U.S. swimmers won 11 gold medals. In Rio, they nabbed 16. In London, they also captured 16 gold medals. So many of those came courtesy of 23-time Olympic gold medalist Michael Phelps, of course, in 2012 and 2016. Ledecky was at her peak in Rio, where she won every freestyle distance from 200 to 800 meters and four total gold medals.

Here, the American swimmers have won eight silvers. In most of those races, they weren’t favored to win, but in some they had great chances to — like Regan Smith, the world record-holder in the 100-meter backstroke, who took second behind Australian Kaylee McKeown. Smith has yet to win gold at an Olympics, much the same as her teammates Kate Douglass and Gretchen Walsh. All three were (and are) potential breakout stars for Team USA, but they’ll likely need to put some gold around their necks to fully break out.

Walsh also took silver in an event in which she owns the world record, the 100 fly. Fellow American Torri Huske was the surprise winner and a first-time Olympic gold medalist in that event, and she’s been a bright spot for the U.S. team, with a silver in the 100 free and as part of the women’s 4×100 free relay to add to her haul this week so far.

But there have also been plenty of disappointments. Lilly King, the world record-holder in the women’s 100-meter breaststroke, missed the podium by one-hundredth of a second. Chris Guiliano, who qualified for the Paris Games in the 50, 100 and 200 freestyle events, failed to advance to the semifinal round in two of them. Ryan Murphy, a bedrock of Team USA for more than a decade in the backstroke, earned bronze in the 100 back but failed to qualify for the final in the 200 back. There were no Americans in the men’s 200 fly final, just one in the men’s 200 breaststroke final (Josh Matheny, who finished seventh), and the two American finalists in the 100 free finished seventh and eighth. The only American woman in the 200 free final (Claire Weinstein) finished last as well.

Those individual event results also echo results posted in relays, where the Americans have won just one gold medal (in the men’s 4×100 free relay) to two silvers (in the men’s 4×200 free relay and the women’s 4×100 free relay).

Even eight-time Olympic gold medalist Caeleb Dressel raised eyebrows on Thursday morning, eking through to the semifinals of the 50-meter freestyle as the 13th qualifier (for 16 spots). He’s trying to defend his gold medal in that event as well as the 100 fly later this week.

Part of the dynamic at play is that certain swimmers and certain events are later in the Olympic program. But the larger issue is that the Americans are not the best in the world at most of these events, like they were when Phelps would clean up in a handful of races on rosters that also included teammates such as six-time Olympic gold medalist Ryan Lochte and five-time Olympic gold medalist Nathan Adrian. Team USA here at the Paris Games is also young, with a number of first-time Olympians and also some swimmers reaching Olympic finals for the first time in their careers — inexperience that shows. Even surprise Tokyo gold medalists haven’t been able to match their feats; Bobby Finke finished second to Ireland’s Daniel Wiffen in the 800 free after a stunning win in the inaugural 800 free three years ago.

But, really, what this comes down to is: The world is better. The Australians nearly doubled the number of gold medals that the Americans earned last summer at world championships in Japan. Ariarne Titmus has overtaken Ledecky at an event that used to be one of her best, the 400 free, and is the face of mid-distance women’s swimming. McKeown has bested Smith in her best backstroke event and could very well beat her again in the 200 back.

Marchand, who is undoubtedly the face of these Games in the pool, is swimming for France. Summer McIntosh, the teenage phenom who won her first of likely many Olympic gold medals in the 400 IM earlier this week, is swimming for Canada. Both swimmers train in the United States … but don’t add to the Team USA medal count when it matters most.

That’s just the reality of international swimming right now. The era of American dominance in the pool might have given way to something that’s far more balanced across the world. Even if those wearing the red, white and blue aren’t willing to concede the rest of this meet just yet.

“We have some really great events coming up,” Ledecky said, speaking generally about the lack of gold medals for Team USA. “We’re building through the week and even though we maybe don’t have quite as many golds as silver and bronze, we’re still having some really great swims (with) people stepping up, swimming best times.

“There’s a lot to be proud of with this team and a lot that we’re looking forward to as well.”

(Top photo of Australian Kaylee McKeown celebrating her 100-meter backstroke win over American Regan Smith, at right: Jari Pestelacci / Eurasia Sport Images / Getty Images)