We return to Greece today on Olympic Wednesday: Athens had tried for the 1996 Summer Games, but it didn’t win the bid. Alas, it won this one, and the result was 10,557 athletes from 201 countries converging on the original site of the Olympics to compete in 301 medal events across 39 disciplines. There was a lot of anticipation for this moment, although it ended up turning into a financial shit show for the host nation.

Which country won the most medals? The United States (101) topped the Russian Federation (90), while a new emerging Olympic power—China—finished third with 63 medals. The host nation won 16 total medals, which was a nice haul for Greece. In total, 23 different nations reached the double-digit threshold at these Games, further demonstrating that many countries and regions of the world were now competitive.

Most Outstanding Male Athlete: Michael Phelps, United States

Winner of six gold medals and two bronzes, American swimmer Michael Phelps burst onto the Olympic scene as he began his dominance of the sport that would last for quite some time—and 28 overall medals by the time he retired from professional swimming. Emphasis on the word “professional” … Phelps won four individual golds and one individual bronze, to go along with three relay medals. We will list them below.

He won the 100m butterfly, the 200m fly, the 200m individual medley, the 400m IM, the 4x200m free relay, and the 4x100m medley relay. His bronze finishes came in the 200m free and the 4x100m free relay (which was a huge upset at the time, as the Americans traditionally had dominated this event in Olympic history). As a result of the bronzes, he was unable to match the Mark Spitz standard set in the 1972 Games.

Most Outstanding Female Athlete: Petria Thomas, Australia

Two different women swimmers won at least four medals in Athens: Australian Petria Thomas and American Natalie Coughlin. In these situations, we usually go with the individual who has won more golds on their own, and in this case, that’s both (one solo gold each). Thus, we’ll go with Thomas, who won more total golds overall: 100m fly, 4x100m free relay, and 4x100m medley relay, plus a silver in the 200m fly.

Most Outstanding Male Team: Cuban Boxing

In the 11 different weight classes, Cuban boxers won five golds, two silvers, and one bronze. Since only one competitor per nation was allowed in each class, this means Cuba won almost 73 percent of the medals possible for it to win. The five gold medalists were Yan Barthelemí (light fly); Yuriorkis Gamboa (fly); Guillermo Rigondeaux (bantam); Mario Kindelán (light); and Odlanier Solís (heavy). Well done, Cuba!

Most Outstanding Female Team: Japanese Judo

The women from Japan dominated the judo discipline, winning five golds and a silver in seven weight classes, again where only one competitor per country was allowed. The only class the Japanese women failed to medal in was the lightweight class. The gold medalists: Ryoko Tamura-Tani (extra light); Ayumi Tanimoto (half middle); Masae Ueno (middle); Noriko Anno (half heavy); and Maki Tsukada (heavy).