Someone has to finish fourth. It's the loneliest place in any championships and Gillian O'Sullivan got her first experience of it in Munich yesterday.And there is no consolation, especially when O'Sullivan came so close to taking the European Championship bronze medal.
In the last few hundred metres of the 20 kilometrem walk the medal was practically around her neck, until the Italian Erica Alfridi sped past and spoiled the celebrations.
It would have been just rewards for O'Sullivan's effort. Though gold and silver was decided when two Russians broke clear of the field almost from the gun, it was the Kerry athlete who led most of the chase for bronze. Around the final 2km lap she had opened a lead of some 25 metres on the Italian, and figured the battle was probably won.
"I knew there was a danger," she said. "I just didn't think she was that close. I had gained a lot on her, but I'd felt too that I'd given my max and I was really hanging on. The breathing was gone and my legs were starting to wobble at that stage."
Coming towards the tunnel of the Olympic Stadium, just 300 metres from the finish, Alfridi was moving like a train again and simply passed O'Sullivan without any mercy. Inside the stadium the last shots on the TV screen showed O'Sullivan apparently safe with the bronze. When the Italian emerged from the tunnel there was all round shock on the faces of the Irish supporters gathered close to the finish line.
"I am delighted to finish fourth, but I'm just disappointed that I let go of the bronze medal. But I know I'm getting there now. I was confident with my strength and speed. Mentally I may need to work a little more.
"But it was a tough race. The two Russians were gone from the gun and I was left in the elite group. It kept getting less and less, and then it was me with the Italian. I was still feeling strong but then I just couldn't quite hang on until the finish."
There was reason to believe O'Sullivan would have the speed to hold off the Italian, especially after her world record for 5,000 metres on the track last month, but clearly she had walked herself into near exhaustion. The Italian, at 34, is also a far more mature athlete, and had taken silver in the event as 10km in Budapest four years ago.
At least her finishing time of one hour, 28 minutes, 46 seconds gave O'Sullivan a new Irish record - improving the 1:29.12 she set in Dublin in June.
From before halfway, Olimpiada Ivanova - the current world champion who improved the world record to 1:24.50 earlier this year - was out on her own and arrived home coolly in 1:26.42. A more drained looking Yelena Nikolayeva took the silver in 1:28.33.
For the 25-year-old O'Sullivan, who went full-time into the sport before the Sydney Olympics, the future looks brighter than ever. Her frequent training partner Olive Loughnane also competed well to take 13th place in 1:33.08.
The 400 metres, meanwhile, was meant to be another event for the Irish to shine but last night in Munich fell a little short of expectations. Paul McKee came desperately close to making the men's final with a courageous and all-out effort but in finishing fifth in his semi-final he failed to progress by one place.
The Belfast athlete appeared to have done everything right to ensure his place but with only the four top finishers to progress from each race it was always a demanding task. Although his time of 45.92 seconds was the third fastest of his career, McKee's disappointment was clear and he shot straight off the track afterwards to contemplate his loss.
Britain's hope Daniel Caines won the race in 45.35 seconds, ahead of Germany's Ingo Schultz. Into the home straight McKee was battling for third with Marek Plawgo of Poland and but then tired ever so slightly and allowed the Hungarian Zsolt Szeglet to take fourth in 45.82. The second semi-final was actually far slower and fourth place there clocked 46.15.
Karen Shinkins came to Munich as European Indoor bronze medallist from Vienna earlier this year and also had high ambitions of reaching tomorrow's final. Instead she came out in the first of the three semi-finals and faded into fourth, well short of one of the two automatic qualifying places, or the two fastest losers.
For the first 300 metres Shinkins looked well on target but was passed twice in the finishing straight and crossed the line in 52.50 seconds - one of her slowest times all season and well down on her Irish record of 51.07. Victory there went to Russian Olesya Zykina in 50.47.
"I knew the girls outside were going to go out hard," she said. "And you risk paying for that at the finish. But I kicked a lot earlier than I expected to do from 200 metres, because I felt I needed to pull myself back into the race a bit quicker.
But I just faded that bit too much when I needed an extra bit of speed."
Finally, Terry McHugh's days of competing at the highest level seem certain to be over. He failed to register a single throw in yesterday's javelin as the knee injury that curtailed his national championships last month came back to haunt him. Eileen O'Keeffe also failed to get beyond the hammer qualification with a best throw of 59.64 metres, leaving her in 15th place.
