What makes me kind of chuckle is the different ways the medal count is displayed. Here in the US we have the countries ranked by total medals, putting the US on top. Of course, China has way more GOLD medals, although I do think it's worth noting that a lot of these golds came in sports where judging is involved.

I think Canada is also listing the total medal count, because they are higher on the list that way, while Great Britain is ranking by gold medals, which places them higher than total medal count.

The Olympic team structure is set up to promote nationalism, although I think anybody appreciates a transcendent performance no matter what country they come from. And a lot of the sports compete as national teams regularly (unlike cycling that has trade teams).

Imagine, though, if international competitions were about creating the best team, period. I wonder by how much a 4x100 freestyle relay team composed of Michael Phelps, Jason Lezak (both USA), Eamon Sullivan (AUS) and Alain Bernard (FRA) would crush the world record.