Olympic-Sized Grief: When Victory and Loss Collide

You know that moment when an Olympian crosses the finish line, sticks their landing, or nails that final serve? The world erupts in cheers, confetti rains down, and... wait, are those tears?

Turns out, the Olympics aren't just about gold medals and world records. They're also about grief. Yeah, you heard that right. Grief. That messy, complicated emotion we usually associate with funerals and breakups? It's got a front-row seat at the biggest sporting event in the world.

Grief doesn't care if you're on a podium or your couch. It shows up uninvited, wearing its best tracksuit, ready to make waves in the Olympic pool of emotions.

So, let's dive into three examples of sme Olympic-sized grief moments you might've missed–or maybe ugly-cried over already (and if you want to ugly-cry even more, head over to our Instagram for more stories):

• McKenzie Long, USA track star, has a pre-race ritual that hits different. Before her 200m sprint, she's not just stretching or visualizing her win. She's sitting solo in the stands, having a one-sided conversation with her mom – who died from a heart attack just five months ago.
  McKenzie's take on grief? "It doesn't get better. There's always that pit of grief in the background of everything you do." Ouch. But also... yeah. We feel you, McKenzie.
  
  McKenzie's not just running for medals. She's running through her grief, using it as fuel for her Olympic dreams. It's a powerful reminder that grief doesn't have to derail us – sometimes, it can propel us forward in ways we never expected.
  
  
•  Brody Malone just helped clinch bronze for the US men's gymnastics team. But this victory is layered with a decade-old loss. Malone's been chasing Olympic dreams since childhood, originally alongside his biggest fan: his mom. She passed when he was 12, leaving that shared dream hanging.
  
  Brody's dad summed it up in a tear-jerker of a speech: "Your mom and I are so proud of you." Excuse us while we pretend we're not sobbing into our Team USA t-shirts. It's not just about the medal – it's about finishing what Brody and his mom started.
  
  
•   After her golden moment in Tokyo, gymnastics star Suni Lee faced an opponent no amount of training could prepare her for: two kidney diseases that threatened to end her career. Her doctor's prognosis? A hard "no" to continuing gymnastics.
  
  Lee's response? "There were so many times where I thought about quitting," she admits. But quitting isn't in an Olympian's vocabulary. Through sheer determination and grueling physical therapy, Lee fought her way back onto the U.S. team. Her journey underscores a crucial point: grief isn't just about death. It's about the loss of identity, of dreams, of what could have been.
  
  

Grief and sports go together like, well, track and field. It's not just about the losses on the court or in the pool. It's about the losses that shape us, drive us, and sometimes threaten to drown us.

So the next time you watch an Olympic event, remember – behind every perfect routine, lightning-fast sprint, or gravity-defying flip, there might be a story of grief.