Did anybody else watch the heptathalon and marathon? I was dipping in and out to watch the progress of each. Denise Lewis dropped out when she realised that she was no longer a medal contender and Paula Radcliffe dropped out "due to heat exhaustion" when she only had 3 miles left to run. Why? In the marathon,if the "lesser" runners could continue and finish, why couldn't she? After all, PR is a champion and would have trained very hard for this. Everybody knew that Athens was hot and for commentators to imply that the heat was too much for her was in my mind, making excuses. PR is a phenomenal athelete and I think she has let herself down by dropping out of the race when she only had 3 miles to go. DL is also a great champion and initially I thought she had a injury but it turns out that she lost all hope in winning.
I have never been a champion of anything so I cannot appreciate the mental anguish that these people endure when they know they are going to lose but they should take note of a true champion like the Ethiopian, Haile Gebrselassie. He was 2 times Olympic champion of the 10,000 race. He was aiming for a 3rd gold medal but in the end he came 5th, still a good position. He did not drop out when the going got tough. Champions win races but they also accept defeat graciously.