The U.S. Is Currently Dominating The Olympics With The Most Medals

Thousands of women and men are going for the gold with the start of the 2016 Olympic Games last week, but only a select few will earn one of those cherished medals.

It's not just athletes pursuing Olympic glory. For the countries competing in the games, leading the gold, silver, and bronze medal count is a matter of national — and international — pride and prestige.

The United States leads the world in the all-time standings with 900-plus gold medals won over the years, according to NBC Olympics. So far, it's living up to the hype. Michael Phelps has widened his lead for the most decorated Olympian of all time taking home six medals, five of which are gold, at these games. He now has a whopping 28 medals overall — 14 ahead of the second-highest record holders.

But Katie Ledecky proves there's someone coming for him, winning four gold medals and one silver in this games, smashing her own world record in the 800-meter freestyle.

As if that wasn't enough, it's been a good Olympics to be named Simone. Gymnast Simone Biles solidified herself as the best gymnast in the world by winning the gold medal in the women's all-around individual competition. While swimmer Simone Manuel became the first African-American, ever, to win gold in an individual Olympic swimming event, the women's 100-meter freestyle.

Russia and Great Britain are also longtime regulars on the winner's podium. China has been racking up wins of its own in recent games, currently landing in the No. 2 spot for most medals, but still has a lot of ground to gain to catch up to the U.S. as of now.

There have been some new flags in the winner's circle, too. It was predicted that this year at least eight countries were poised to take home their first medals. Already, Fiji has won its first Olympic medal, taking home the gold in rugby sevens.

Puerto Rico has also made Olympic history, earning its first gold with Monica Puig's win after defeating Germany's Angelique Kerber in women's singles tennis at Rio. Kosovo and Singapore have also won their first gold medals at this games.

We'll be keeping track of the official score right here, so you can sit back and focus on watching the amazing feats on and off the field for the next two weeks.

Editor's note: This is the medal count as of 4pm. For the most current results, go here. This is a developing news story. Please check back for updates.