South Korea’s Shin A Lam reacts after being defeated by Germany’s Britta Heidemann (not seen) during their women’s epee individual semifinal fencing competition at the ExCel venue at the London 2012 Olympic Games July 30, 2012. Losing at the Olympics hurts. But suffering an injustice, real or imagined, is agony. Shin A-lam sat on the fencing piste, weeping, for an hour in protest at her elimination from the epee semi-final. She thought she had triumphed over Heidemann, only to see a single second put back on the clock during which she was hit, and eliminated. DAMIR SAGOLJ/REUTERS/Newscom. Find it on Newscom.com: rtrlfive410349
By the time of the Olympic closing ceremony there will be more than 2,100 medals awarded to athletes. That may sound like a ton until you realize that there are over 10,500 athletes in London most of them will be going home empty handed. The focus is on the winners, as it should be, but it is also important to remember that behind that happy joyful person is a line of people who worked just as hard but came up short.
As bad as it feels to lose, the pain will fade with time and for some athletes it will become their biggest motivator when they return to training. So during the 2016 games in Rio de Janeiro these athletes could find themselves atop the podium because of what happened in London. But right now there is just sadness as the dream of Olympic gold was within reach and is once again years away.
For more photos of Olympic loss check out Newscom, and for a closer look at other 2012 Olympic events and athletes there is also the Newscom Olympic Portal.
Travis Stevens after losing in the men’s 81kg judo semifinals during the London 2012 Olympics. imago sportfotodienst/Newscom. Find it on Newscom.com: imagosports650292
Jamel Herring of the U.S. reacts as he leaves the ring after losing to Kazakhstan’s Daniyar Yeleussinov in the Men’s Light Welter (64kg) Round of 32 boxing match during the London 2012 Olympic Games July 31, 2012. MURAD SEZER/REUTERS/Newscom. Find it on Newscom.com: rtrlfive397638
Denmark’s Ann Grete Norgaard cries after their loss to Norway in their women’s handball Preliminaries Group B match at the Copper Box venue during the London 2012 Olympic Games August 3, 2012. MARKO DJURICA/REUTERS/Newscom. Find it on Newscom.com: rtrlfive413681
China’s Liu Xiang sits on ground after men’s 110m hurdles heat at London 2012 Olympic Games, London, Britain, Aug. 7, 2012. Liu Xiang tumbled and was disqualified for semifinal. Li Ming/Xinhua/Photoshot/Newscom. Find it on Newscom.com: ptsphotoshot889922
Jordyn Wieber of the U.S. is seen during the women’s gymnastics floor exercise final in the North Greenwich Arena during the London 2012 Olympic Games August 7, 2012. MIKE BLAKE/REUTERS/Newscom. Find it on Newscom.com: rtrlfive426180
Louis Smith of Great Britain cries during the men’s gymnastics qualification in the North Greenwich Arena during the London 2012 Olympic Games July 28, 2012. DYLAN MARTINEZ/REUTERS/Newscom. Find it on Newscom.com: rtrlfive385943
Canada’s midfielder Kaylyn Kyle (L) reacts at the final whistle after losing 4-3 during the London 2012 Olympic Games womens semi-final football match between USA and Canada at Old Trafford in Manchester, north-west England on August 6, 2012. ANDREW YATES/AFP/Getty Images/Newscom. Find it on Newscom.com: afplivefour639978
Latvia’s Martins Plavins reacts after losing a point against Brazil’s Emanuel and Alison during their men’s beach volleyball semifinal match at Horse Guards Parade during the London 2012 Olympic Games August 7, 2012. MARCELO DEL POZO/REUTERS/Newscom. Find it onNewscom.com: rtrlfive426124
Rafaela Silva of Brazil (white) and coach Rosicleia Campos crying after losing against Hedvig Karakas of Hungary in the Women -57 kg Elimination Round of 16 at the London 2012 Olympic Games Judo competition, London, Britain, 30 July 2012. SRDJAN SUKI/EPA/Newscom. Find it on Newscom.com: epaphotos503735
Michael Phelps of the U.S. reacts after finishing in fourth place in the men’s 400m individual medley during the London 2012 Olympic Games at the Aquatics Centre July 28, 2012. MICHAEL DALDER/REUTERS/Newscom. Find it on Newscom.com: rtrlfive387335
You may also be interested in these other posts on FocalPoint:
Olympics 2012: The Thrill of Victory
The Best Photos of the US Women’s Olympic Gymnastics Team
Tags: 2012 olympics, Cry, Fencing, gymnastics, london olympics, Sad