This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2016, and information in the article may be outdated. It is provided only for personal research purposes and may not be reprinted.
Rio de Janeiro – As second of three Saturdays unfolds in the 2016 Olympics, there's a chance the USA will produce its 1,000th gold medal in Summer Games history. Through the first seven days that medals have been awarded in Rio, Americans have claimed 20 golds. That brings the country's total to 997. If the 1,000 milestone is reached Saturday, odds are that Michael Phelps will be involved. He's swimming in the 4 x 100 relay, another late-night event. And if other Americans can earn a couple of golds before then, Phelps could be the one to bring home No. 1,000 – with the help of his relay teammates. Obviously, the mark will be reached soon if not Saturday, but it would be fitting if Phelps were involved in another historic moment. Utahns have contributed to the USA gold haul, going back more than a century. As you know, we widen our definition of "Utahn" in covering the Olympics, counting those who have attended high schools or colleges in the state or live and train in Utah. For historical purposes, the U.S. Olympic Committee's database of medalists uses their states of birth. So these are the four Utah natives who have won a total of five gold medals in the Summer Games: Alma Richards, track and field, 1912; Lee Stratford Barnes, track and field, 1924; Dorothy Poynton Hill, diving, 1932 and 1936; and Cael Sanderson, wrestling, 2004. – Kurt Kragthorpe