Rio Olympics 2016: Athletes Ready to Earn Redemption After London Disappointment
It's been four agonizingly long years for the athletes who fell short of expectations at the 2012 London Olympics.
Some, like U.S. sprinter LaShawn Merritt and Australian swimmer Emily Seebohm, went from favorites to flameouts. Others, like Neymar and Brazil's soccer team, left having been oh-so-close to the top of the medal stand. The prestige and infrequency of the Olympics amplifies an athlete's emotions, and the anticipation for a shot at redemption in Rio is undoubtedly at its peak as the Games approach.
Here are some major competitors who have solid chances to dull the pain they felt in London.
Phil Dalhausser: U.S. Men's Sand Volleyball
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Phil Dalhausser has long been known as "The Thin Beast" in sand volleyball. He had his nickname modified, however, to "The Beijing Beast" after winning gold with teammate Todd Rogers in the 2008 Olympics. The duo's lengthy dominance fell short after being surprisingly upset in the round of 16 in London.
The soft-spoken Dalhausser was blunt about the feeling of falling against the tournament's 13th seed, telling NBCsports: "When you lose, it smacks you right in the face the second the ball hits the sand."
The 6'10" big man with hands as soft as any setter's is considered one of the most transcendent players in the sport's history when it comes to owning the net. For well over 10 years, he has been obliterating volleyballs, stuffing opposing hitters and unleashing a jump-serve that is often untouchable.
After the disappointment in London, Dalhausser amicably split up with Rogers, ending a seven-year run of historic success both domestically and internationally. He has since re-joined fellow 36-year-old Nick Lucena, one of his original partners on the AVP Tour, and the duo ranks second on the FIVB World Tour and third in Olympic qualifying points in 2016.
"The Thin Beast" is certainly in a position to add another gold in Rio.
Aliya Mustafina: Russian Women's Gymnastics
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Wait, what? Didn't Mustafina win four medals in London, including a gold?
Yes, she did, except she was also the leader of a Russian Women's Gymnastics team that had the top-ranked "Fierce Five" from the United States within reach before melting at the end of the all-around team final. Mustafina's wobbly score of 14.533 on the balance beam played a role in Russia's upset bid derailing, and it left them in tears as they earned a silver medal.
Mustafina is one of three returners to the Russian team—the others are Maria Paseka and Ksenia Afanasyeva—and is the unquestioned leader of the team for the second consecutive Olympics. The Americans are once again big favorites for the team all-around crown, but the expectations dropped by the now-banned Russian track contingent have been picked up and shared by the country's remaining athletes.
For Mustafina to lead a Russian upset in the team all-around would not only be sweet redemption for the London letdown but also a display of Russian resilience in the face of scorn and speculation from the rest of the world.
Danell Leyva: U.S. Men's Gymnastics
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Danell Leyva was the leader of the U.S. men's gymnastics team heading into London, where the Americans were the top qualifiers heading into the finals. A series of critical errors, including a disastrous fall off of the pommel horse by Leyva, led to a 5th-place finish for the U.S. while China took gold.
Leyva, who also had a wobbly performance on the parallel bars—the event he held the world title in—took the loss very hard, shaking and crying on the sidelines toward the end of the competition. He also took 12th in the individual parallel bars.
The Cuban-born Leyva bounced back to win individual all-around bronze, and was a late addition to the Rio roster after John Orozco re-injured his knee this week. He'll be the veteran presence as the Americans look to get back on the podium.
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LaShawn Merritt: USA Track and Field
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LaShawn Merritt won the 400-meter race at the Beijing Olympics by a record-breaking margin of 0.99 seconds.
Since then, he's been suspended for doping and blamed it on penis-enlargement pills. Merritt's doping story is unique in that his excuse was proven legit and his suspension was reduced. However, he pulled up with a hamstring injury as the top seed in London.
Now 30, Merritt heads to Rio having clocked the only time under 44 seconds in the world this year—a 43.97 at the Olympic Trials in July. Barring injury, he's in position to win gold in the 400 and also help lead the U.S. men to redemption in the 4x400 relay, which they lost to The Bahamas without him in London.
James Magnussen: Austrialian Swimming
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Australian swimmers, according to a post-Olympics review board, apparently acted more like a dysfunctional reality TV cast than a unified team in London. Bullying, alcohol, prescription pills and hurt feelings led to an embarrassing showing for a star-studded power.
The biggest figure in the flameout was James "The Missile" Magnussen, who entered London as the world's fastest 100-meter freestyle swimmer only to lose gold to American Nathan Adrian by 0.01 seconds and then lead the favored Aussie 4x100 relay team to a shocking fourth-place finish.
He was under an intense spotlight throughout the London experience, which the Guardian's Andy Bull dubbed "a very public kind of meltdown."
He bounced back to win the 100 freestyle at the 2013 FINA World Championships before undergoing shoulder surgery. Now 25, Magnussen is no longer the fastest Australian swimmer heading into the Olympics, and he missed out on qualifying for the event at the Australian Swim Championships in April, but he handled it with class and is a member of the 4x100 relay team. A strong leg leading to a medal in that relay—one of the most anticipated events in any Olympics—would be a big band-aid on the gaping wounds suffered by the Aussie swim contingent in London. It would also distance "The Missile" from the target he missed in 2012.
Emily Seebohm: Australian Women's Swimming
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Yes, it's another Australian swimmer.
Coaches should make sure Emily Seebohm hasn't picked up a Pokemon Go habit in the last month, because she blamed being glued to her phone as a possible reason for failing to win gold in the 100-meter backstroke despite being the favorite in the race.
"I don't know, I just felt like I didn't really get off social media and get into my own head," she told Didrik Ottesen of The Telegraph.
The 24-year-old is once again a favorite for gold as the reigning world champion in the 100-meter and 200-meter backstroke events, but only if someone confiscates her phone the night before the races.
Neymar: Brazil Men's Soccer
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Here are three facts to provide proper perspective here:
Brazil has never won a gold medal in men's soccer.
Brazil was stunned by Mexico, 2-1, in the 2012 gold medal game.
Brazil finished a disappointing fourth, including an embarrassing 7-1 stomping at the feet of Germany in the semifinals, as the host of the 2014 World Cup.
With those facts in mind, there is no gold medal that Brazil wants more in its own Olympics than in men's soccer.
It's true that Olympic soccer does not carry the clout of a World Cup. After all, these are U-23 squads with three players over the age limit added to the roster, but it is still the world's most popular sport, and this is still the Olympics.
Neymar, who did not convert on some key chances in the gold medal match, is the face of Brazilian soccer and the man carrying the weight of these expectations. As unfair as it may be for a team that is not a clear favorite, anything less than gold will be a letdown for the host country.
“I think we can learn from everything and if Brazil has still not won this football gold medal that we’re all dreaming of, it’s because our time is yet to come,” he recently told Rio2016.com.
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