The 2024 Olympic Games is underway in Paris, where the United States are once again favourites to top the medal table at the end of the 17-day festival of sport.

The USA have finished on top of the table at 18 of the 29 summer Olympics, including the very first in Athens in 1896, and six of the past seven stretching back to America’s home Games in Atlanta in 1996.

China punctured that streak in Beijing in 2008, and will provide stiff competition again this summer after finishing one short of America’s 39 golds in Tokyo three years ago. Hosts Japan finished third last time ahead of Great Britain in fourth, with the Russian Olympic Commitee in fifth place.

There is no ROC this time after the country was banned due to its invasion of Ukraine, so a far smaller contingent of Russian athletes will compete as neutral athletes (AIN), and they will not be counted on the medal table.

France are expected to climb the table as the host nation, having finished eighth with 10 gold medals in Tokyo.

When do the Paris Olympics end?

The Games began on Friday 26 July and finish with the closing ceremony on Sunday 11 August.

How is the medal table ranked?

The medal table is officially ranked by the International Olympic Committee based first on the number of gold medals won by each nation. Where nations are tied on the same number of golds, silver medals are used to rank them, and then again by bronze if the total silvers are level.

The ranking method has been a point of contention in years gone by, with some countries electing to sort by total medals when the statistics suit them. The American media has often presented the table by total medals in order to the USA in top.

Chinese media tried to claim glory in Tokyo three years ago by adding the medals won by Hong Kong and Taiwan to its tally.

What does AIN mean?

AIN stands for Athlètes Individuels Neutres (individual neutral athletes) and is the banner under which Russian and Belarusian athletes will compete. Both countries were banned from the Olympics following the Russian invasion of Ukraine.

In a statement, the International Olympic Committee said: “No flag, anthem, colors or any other identifications whatsoever of Russia or Belarus will be displayed at the Olympic Games Paris 2024 in any official venue or any official function.”