The pain and pleasure of placing fourth at the Olympics: ‘I didn’t know whether to frame the certificate – or burn it’

The goal is to win a medal and secure a place in history. So how do athletes cope when they are denied that dream by a tiny margin?

The Olympics are the pinnacle of athletic achievement, the culmination of years of training, discipline, determination and sacrifice, all for the shot at winning a medal. So what happens when you miss out on a podium spot by seconds, or a fraction of a second? We spoke to five athletes who placed fourth about how it affected them and what they did next.

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from The Guardian https://ift.tt/eVuWiA1