The Tokyo 2020 Olympics is finally at its close. And even though this year, nothing quite operated in the same fashion, these two special weeks have had it all! Records have been broken, dreams have become reality, tears have been wept, and most importantly…there was unity. In the midst of highly unprecedented circumstances, the Tokyo 2020 Olympics will go down as one of the most historically pertinent games of our time.

Here, Women Love Tech takes a look at the final leaderboard, world records, our favourite moments, and everything in between.

Tokyo 2020 Olympics Standings (Top 10)

For the third time in a row, the United States finished in first place with 39 Gold medals and 113 in total. Just behind, China with 38 Gold medals, also had a strong Olympics but couldn’t hold onto the lead. Japan, in third, will have no regrets, producing a performance to be proud of on home turf. Elsewhere, our Aussies finished strong, too. After finishing 6th in 2008, they dropped down a few ranks in both 2012 and 2016, only to climb back up in 2020. Onwards and upwards for the green and gold!

Moments that made us smile

A spectacular opening ceremony

As expected, Tokyo delivered an opening ceremony to remember. Full of colour, lights and excitement, the opening ceremony provided the perfect starter for the games ahead.

And who better to light the Olympic cauldron than the beloved Naomi Osaka  (in the above feature image) of Japan!

Olympic passion

Despite empty stadiums, the passion for the Olympics truly remained. In one of the most heartwarming moments, Italy’s Tamberi and Qatar’s Barshim shared the Gold medal for Men’s high jump.

New events

For the first time ever, the Olympics introduced Skateboarding as an official event.

Mental Health

Mental health was a big theme during these Olympic Games, and rightfully so. Some big athletes stepped up and spoke out about the importance of taking care of themselves during these highly stressful times. Simone Biles, for one, stepped down from an event to prioritise her own health and to not put the team at risk of missing out on a medal. In the end, she came fighting back to win Bronze in the Beam final.

Noah Lyles also kept the mental health conversation well and truly alive when he broke down into tears at the guilt of not being at the Olympics with his brother, Josephus, an elite sprinter whose dream was to qualify for the Olympic team. He also spoke of the challenges of being on and off antidepressants and gave us one of the realest quotes of the entire Olympics:

“I am not defined by being an Olympic bronze medalist, or a world champion, or the high schooler that went pro,” he said. “That’s not who I am. I’m Noah Lyles. I’m not Usain Bolt’s successor. I’m not Andre de Grasse’s successor. I’m nobody’s successor. I am me. And that’s who I’ll always be.”

World Records

‘Superman’ Karsten Warholm smashes the 400m hurdles world record at a time of 45.94 seconds, having previously set the world record of 46.70 in Oslo back in July.

Yulimar Rojas of Venezuela broke the triple jump world record – a record that had stood for up to 26 years!

China alone broke world records in five events: Weightlifting (Men’s 161 lbs. (Total), Women’s 4×200m Freestyle Relay, Mixed Team 10m Air Rifle Qualification, Men’s 50m Rifle 3 Positions Final, and Women’s Team Sprint.

Australia also broke a record in the Women’s 4×100m Freestyle Relay!

Here’s a list of all the world records that were broken at the Tokyo 2020 Olympics:

Event	Competitor	New	Previous
Cycling – Track Men’s Team Pursuit	Italy	3:42.032	3:44.672 2020
Cycling – Track Women’s Team Pursuit	Germany	4:04.242	4:10.236 2016
Cycling – Track Women’s Team Sprint	Bao S. / Zhong T. China	31.804s	32.034s 2015
Shooting Men’s 50m Rifle 3 Positions Final	Zhang Changhong China	466.0pts	465.3pts 2018
Shooting Women’s Trap Qualification	Zuzana Rehak Stefecekova Slovakia	125pts	123pts 2019
Shooting Mixed Team 10m Air Rifle Qualification	Yang Q. / Yang H. China	633.2pts	631.7pts 2020
Sport Climbing Women’s Speed	Aleksandra Miroslaw Poland	6.84s	6.96s 2020
Swimming Men’s 4×100m Medley Relay	United States	3:26.78	3:27.28 2009
Swimming Mixed 4×100m Medley Relay	Britain	3:37.58	3:38.41 2020
Swimming Men’s 100m Butterfly	Caeleb Dressel United States	49.45s	49.50s 2019
Swimming Women’s 200m Breaststroke	Tatjana Schoenmaker South Africa	2:18.95	2:19.11 2013
Swimming Women’s 4×200m Freestyle Relay	China	7:40.33	7:41.50 2019
Swimming Women’s 4×100m Freestyle Relay	Australia	3:29.69	3:30.05 2018
Track and Field Women’s 400m Hurdles	Sydney McLaughlin United States	51.46s	51.90s 2021
Track and Field Men’s 400m Hurdles	Karsten Warholm Norway	45.94s	46.70s 2021
Track and Field Women’s Triple Jump	Yulimar Rojas Venezuela	15.67m	15.50m 1995
Weightlifting Men’s over 240 lbs. (Total)	Lasha Talakhadze Georgia	488kg	485kg 2021
Weightlifting Men’s over 240 lbs. (Clean and jerk)	Lasha Talakhadze Georgia	265kg	264kg 2019
Weightlifting Men’s over 240 lbs. (Snatch)	Lasha Talakhadze Georgia	223kg	222kg 2021
Weightlifting Men’s 161 lbs. (Total)	Shi Zhiyong China	364kg	363kg 2019

Youth takes home the women’s 800m crown

The first and second-placed runners were both only 19 years old! Athing Mu, who won Gold, smashed the US record with 1:55.21 and Silver medallist, Keely Hodgkinson bettered the British best to 1:55.88.

Domination on the big stage