TOKYO — China is kicking the United States' tail (at least for now) in these Olympics, although you wouldn’t know it if you just scanned the medal tables in the American media.
In an unexplained yet (apparently) nationally accepted counting method, Americans tally the standings not by what country wins the most golds, but what country wins the most total medals.
NBC. New York Times. Washington Post. Alas, even Yahoo Sports.
This is, to be clear, ridiculous.
That means China’s current tally of 32 golds, 21 silvers and 16 bronzes (69 total) is somehow not as good as the United States’ 25 golds, 29 silvers and 21 bronzes (75 total).