For First Time In 20 Years, Team USA's Women Athletes Won More Medals Than The Men

Rebecca Shapiro
Updated
Silver medalists Lauren Gibbs and Elana Meyers Taylor of Team USA celebrate during the medal ceremony for Bobsleigh. (Photo: David Ramos via Getty Images)
Silver medalists Lauren Gibbs and Elana Meyers Taylor of Team USA celebrate during the medal ceremony for Bobsleigh. (Photo: David Ramos via Getty Images)

The 2018 Winter Olympics have concluded, and for the first time in two decades, women competing on Team USA brought home more medals than their male counterparts.

Team USA won a total of 23 medals in Pyeongchang, South Korea ― nine gold, eight silver and six bronze medals among them. Twelve of the 23 medals were won by women ― not including two that were achieved in mixed events (ice dancing and the team figure skating competition). When it came to the gold medals, five of the nine were won by women in history-making performances.

Kikkan Randall and Jessica Diggins were two of several women athletes to make history in Pyeongchang. (Photo: Lars Baron via Getty Images)
Kikkan Randall and Jessica Diggins were two of several women athletes to make history in Pyeongchang. (Photo: Lars Baron via Getty Images)

Cross-country skiers Kikkan Randall and Jessica Diggins won gold in the sprint freestyle, winning a medal in the event for Team USA for the first time since 1976 (and its first gold, to boot). Seventeen-year-old snowboarding sensation Chloe Kim won gold in the halfpipe, becoming the youngest ever gold medalist in the history of the event. The women’s hockey team won gold in the finals, beating longtime rival Canada and giving the team its first Olympic gold since the event debuted at the Winter Games in 1998.

Kim won gold and audiences hearts. (Photo: Alexander Hassenstein via Getty Images)
Kim won gold and audiences hearts. (Photo: Alexander Hassenstein via Getty Images)

Even when the women didn’t win gold, they still made history. Women athletes won three of six silver medals and four of six bronze medals. Alpine skier Lindsey Vonn took bronze in the downhill event to become the oldest Olympic female alpine medalist at the age of 33.

Team USA’s female athletes also surpassed their male teammates in medal count. As the Washington Post noted, only alpine skier Mikaela Shiffrin, snowboarder Jamie Anderson and ice dancing siblings Alex and Maia Shibutani won two medals at the games.

There were more men on Team USA, too. A total of 244 athletes made up America’s delegation ― the largest U.S. delegation in Winter Olympics history. There were 135 men and 109 women.

After the Associated Press obtained a medal tally projection chart created by the United States Olympic Committee (USOC), it became clear that Team USA did not meet the organization’s expectations for awarded medals in Peyongchang. USOC projected Team USA would bring home a target of 37 medals, setting a minimum of 25 medals and a top-line expectation of 59.

Team USA came in fourth in overall medal count. Norway took the lead, bringing home 39 medals, followed by Germany at 31 and Canada at 29.

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This article originally appeared on HuffPost.