Michael Phelps of the U.S. poses with his gold medal after winning the men's 100m butterfly final during the London 2012 Olympic Games at the Aquatics Centre August 3, 2012. Phelps, showing no signs of complacency after breaking every imaginable record in Olympic swimming, won the men's 100 metres butterfly gold medal at the London Games on Friday. On the eve of his retirement, he provided an unforgettable reminder of his incredible talent and determination when he came from seventh at the turn to overpower his rivals and win in a time of 51.21 seconds. (Photo : REUTERS/Michael Dalder )

The Olympics medal count after the seventh full day has some surprises in its top ranks.

For the first time in London, team USA has taken a lead in the total number of medals as well as the number of gold medals.

The U.S. has so far secured 43 total medals, of which 21 are gold. China is just behind the U.S. with 42 total medals, and 20 gold.

The medal count standings flipped over since Thursday, when the U.S. team was still lagging behind China by four medals for the total number.

Like Us on Facebook

Friday marked the golden day in the swimming games.

Michael Phelps extended his world record of the total number of Olympics medals in winning his 21st medal to date in the 100m butterfly.

Missy Franklin took home her third gold medal in London and also broke a world record in the 200m backstroke. Katie Ledecky then became the youngest swimmer to win the 800m freestyle.

By the end of Friday, Russia has leaped to third with 23 medals, followed by Great Britain in fourth with 22 overall medals.

Despite China’s initial lead in the Olympics medal count, Team U.S. has a good chance to keep its throne from today on.

In the track and field games, which got underway on Friday, the U.S. is expected to be dominant, while China is unlikely to excel, according to Bleacher Report. This weekend's track and field games are likely to set the best chances for the U.S. to rack medals.  

The medal count at the 2008 Olympic Games saw the U.S. and China compete neck to neck, finishing with the U.S. winning the most number of medals overall, while China took home the most gold medals.