Singapore's Table Tennis Ladies Captain,Li Jia Wei tried her best in the true Olympian spirit but was not able to overcome a gritty Guo Ye (World No.2). She lost in the Bronze Medal playoff last night -22nd August 2008 and there were 4 million Singaporeans cheering for her with every singles smash,lob,backhand and topspin plus every airpunch she made.
One may view her dainty moves around the table-tennis table as similar to a 'princess' and compare that to the gtitty Chinese No. 2 as a 'tomboy' but there is no denying that Li Jia Wei is a world-class athlete and the Beijing Olympics have proven that she is indeed in the top 5 table-tennis players in the world right now. She wrote on her hand "Wen" which meant "steady" to ensure that she kept a steady head and control her emotions.
Yes, she was disappointed and cried but I admire her discipline,tenacity,mental toughness and most of all her sacrifice to reach the pinnacle of the sport which has given Singapore so much to be proud of. The world remembers only the winners but not those who had slogged for hours every day for the last 10 - 15 years to compete in a match or race lasting no more than 1 hour or even 10 seconds (see 100 metres) and at the end there is nothing so show for it, if you are 4th,5th 16th or 35th. Ordinary people will never understand or experience the feeling of this greatness or happiness or sorrow - at the highest levels such as the Olympics.
At the end, it is the Olympic Creed which we should be mindful what Bishop Etherbert Talbot said in 1908 :
"The most important thing in the Olympic Games is not to win but to take part,just as the most important thing in life is not the triumph but the struggle.The essential point is not to have conquered but to have fought well"
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