WELL, those 16 days went quickly.
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Another Olympiad – the 31st of its kind – has come and gone and depending on who you talk to, Kitty Chiller’s Australian athletes didn’t fare all that well in their respective sports at Rio.
So how did the western contingent wearing green and gold go?
The Hockeyroos entered the games as a medal chance, but started their pool campaign with two losses, placing the Australian women on the back foot.
Orange’s Edwina Bone and Parkes’ Mariah Williams both produced moments of brilliance throughout the tournament, but ultimately a 4-2 quarter-final loss at the hands of New Zealand ended their Rio bid.
Bone was philosophical at the end of the experience.
“I am so proud of what this group has achieved over the past four years,” she said in a post on instagram.
“It hasn't ended how we envisioned but that is elite sport, and we ride the highs and lows of competitions together.
“The heartbreaking fact that we did not reach our potential will fade and I will look back at my Olympic experience with great memories and learnings.
“We have a great future ahead of us and I look forward to working hard to ensure we get the success we deserve.
“A big thank you to everyone who has supported me over this cycle, the messages of encouragement and kindness haven't gone unnoticed and I will endeavour to get back to you all.”
The Matildas and Australian rugby sevens boys endured similar campaigns.
Cowra’s Ellie Carpenter and Orange-born Tameka Butt exited the games in heart-breaking fashion, their penalty shoot-out, quarter-final loss to hosts Brazil will go down as one of the most enthralling moments of the 2016 Games.
John Porch and Pat McCutcheon both performed well in their sevens rugby stint, but the cut-throat nature of such a rapid-fire sport meant any minuscule mistake can cost a team big time.
And unfortunately for the Australian men, they made one too many mistakes, eliminated at the quarter-final stage of the tournament after a 22-5 loss to eventual bronze medalists South Africa.
The Australian men lost their seventh-versus-eighth play-off too, 12-10 at the hands of France.
The heartbreaking fact that we did not reach our potential will fade and I will look back at my Olympic experience with great memories.
- Eddie Bone
While at the track, former CSU Bathurst student Ben St Lawrence timed 28 minutes, 46.32 seconds in the men’s 10000 metres, placing 28th in a red-hot field led by British phenom Mo Farah.
No medals for the western contingent at the games, with Australia’s total of eight gold, 11 silver and 10 bronze medals placing the country 10th on the world stage.
Olympic juggernaut America finished on top of the medal tally with an incredible 46 goal medals, 37 silver and 38 bronze.