Not true. The USSR was always the medal count leader, until they broke up. Edit: The US has led the medal count 10 times in 27 Olympiads, the USSR 8 times. In the beginning, it seems the host country was always the leader. Here is where I found this info: http://www.darmoni.net/joete.htm
Wow, I just watched the super heavy womens weightlifting. It's cliched, but those are some scary looking women.