If the Pyeongchang Olympics were today, Germany would win the most gold medals and the most medals overall.
That was the forecast on Monday from U.S.-based Gracenote, a sports and entertainment data provider, which put out its calculations nine months before the Winter Games.
Germany is predicted to win 14 gold medals and 35 overall. Next is Norway with 12 gold and 34 overall, followed by the United States with 10 gold and 32 overall.
After them in the gold-medal count are France (9), Austria (7), South Korea (7), Netherlands (6), Russia (6), and China (6).
The calculations assume Russia’s full team will participate and not be subject to a doping ban.
Gracenote expects 29 different countries to win medals, up from a previous high of 26.
Some predictions:
- German biathlete Laura Dahlmaier will win six medals: Five gold and one silver.
- Martin Johnsrud Sundby will win four medals in cross-country skiing: Three gold and one silver.
- The breakout star for the United States will be Heather Bergsma (formerly Heather Richardson) in speedskating.
- Jorrit Bergsma, the Dutch husband of the American speedskater, will win four medals in the sport.
- France will win 20 medals overall, its best Winter Games performance.
- Austria expects mixed results. It’s projected to win 15 medals, two fewer than Sochi, but more gold medals than Sochi.
- China’s star will be short-track skater Wu Dajing with two gold medals.
- Canada is projected to win five gold medals.
- Russia is forecast to win 22 overall, 10 fewer than at the 2014 Olympics in Sochi where the results for the host nation were tainted by a massive doping scandal.
The virtual table weighs results in recent world championships and other world-class events, giving more weight to the most recent.
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