Top 5 SEC schools with most medals won in 2024 Paris Olympics ft. LSU
The 2024 Paris Olympics was another medal-heavy occasion for the SEC to flex its athletic muscle. Indeed, if the SEC had been a separate nation, it would have sent the 11th most athletes of any country in the world. The conference's schools were represented by athletes who ended up with a total of 33 gold medals, 30 silver medals and 20 bronze medals.
Here's a closer look at the SEC schools that fared the best at the 2024 Paris Olympics.
Top 5 SEC schools with the most medals won in 2024 Paris Olympics
#1. Texas (16 medals)
New SEC member Texas took the league high with 16 total medals. Four Americans won gold medals from Texas, including Kevin Durant in men's basketball. Golfer Scottie Sheffler, shot putter Ryan Crouser and long jumper Tara Davis-Woodhall were the other USA winners from Texas. The Longhorns also had gold medalists from Hungary and St. Lucia.
The school also produced nine silver medal winners and a single bronze winner. Eight of those 10 were Americans, with sprinter Julien Alfred of St. Lucia winning silver to go with her gold and German Leo Neugebauer winning silver in the men's decathlon.
#2. Kentucky (tie) (11 medals)
The Wildcats tied for second most. Of their 11 medalists, seven were gold medal winners, all from the USA. Women's 4x400 relay stars Alexis Holmes and Syndey McLaughlin-Levrone won gold together, with McLaughlin-Levrone also winning the 400-meter hurdles gold.
100-meter hurdler also Masai Russell won gold while a trio of Wildcats won basketball gold medals: Devin Booker, Anthony Davis and Bam Adebayo. UK also had a pair of silver medalists and a pair of bronze medalists. Aside from one women's track and field athlete from Puerto Rico, all the Wildcat medalists were from the USA.
#2. Florida (tie) (11 medals)
Florida also won 11 total medals but claimed only four gold medals. Swimmers Bobby Finke and Caeleb Dressel each won gold, Finke in the 1500 meter freestyle and Dressel in the 4x100 meter freestyle. Dressel won another gold in the 4x100 meter medley relay. Hurdler Grant Holloway won Florida's other gold medal in the 110 meters.
UF had four silver medal winners and three bronze winners. With the exception of one Canadian athlete, all UF medals were won by Americans.
#4. LSU (8 medals)
The Tigers picked up eight medals in Paris. That included a trio of gold winners. Swedish pole vaulter Mondo Duplantis won a gold. Likewise, so did men's 4x100 relay winner Vernon Norwood and women's 4x100 relay winner Sha'Carri Richardson of the USA.
LSU added four silver medals and a single bronze to their medal count. Five of the eight LSU medalists were from the USA, including one from Mexico and one from Great Britain.
#5. Arkansas (7 medals)
Arkansas tied Texas A&M with seven medals. But since the Hogs produced three gold medal winners while A&M had just two, Arkansas gets the last spot. Jamaican men's discuss thrower Roje Stona won gold. Americans Christoper Bailey and Kaylyn Brown won gold in the men's and women's 4x400 meter relay, respectively.
A pair of silver medalists and a pair of bronze medals were also won by Arkansas athletes, with only three of Arkansas's seven medals coming from athletes from the USA.
Which SEC school impressed you the most with its 2024 Paris Olympics success? Let us know your thoughts in the comments section below.