Luis Alvarenga/Globo via Getty Images; REUTERS/Grigory Dukor; REUTERS/Dylan MartinezIt's what many athletes work toward for most their lives: to be at the Olympics.
Unfortunately, all those years spent spilling blood, sweat and tears preparing can sometimes lead to just, well, tears.
With the 2012 Summer Games now behind us, we look back at some of the moments that broke the hearts of not just those competing, but for us watching as well.
1. Jordyn Wieber: The reigning world all-around gymnastics champion couldn't contain her disappointment after the she failed to qualify for the women's all-around finals.
2. Xiang Liu: The Chinese hurdler just can't seem to catch a break. After winning a gold medal in 2004, Liu was forced to withdraw from the 110-meter hurdle race in 2008 due to a foot injury, only to find himself crashing into the first obstacle this time around and unable to finish yet again.
3. Lam Shin: Time was clearly not on her side. The South Korean fencer broke down after an incorrectly set clock caused her to lose the women's epee individual fencing semifinals against Germany's Britta Heidemann.
4. Tyson Gay: The U.S. sprinter painfully gave thisclose new meaning. During the 100-meter men's final, he lost out on a bronze medal by, wait for it, one one-hundredth of a second! Yeah, we'd be crying, too.
5. Yoshiaki Oiwa: As if falling off your horse wasn't bad enough, imagine entering an equestrian competition as the favorite to win, only to wind up dead last. Well, Japan's Oiwa didn't have to imagine.
6. Samuel Mikulak: The look on the U.S. gymnast's face seemed to say it all after he lost his grip during the men's gymnastics qualification round, and thereby missing out on competing in the all-around competition.
7. Gemma Howell: Hailing from Great Britain, the judo competitor no doubt felt like she let a lot of spectators down when she got disqualified for illegally grabbing the leg of reigning world and European champ Gevrise Emane of France during the opening-round matchup.
8. Manteo Mitchell: OK, this is definitely heartbreaking. But pretty inspiring nevertheless. While running in the 1,600-meter relay, the U.S. sprinter broke his leg about halfway though the race! While that would have been the end for most, Mitchell pushed on and, yep, actually finished, giving Team USA a place in the final.
9. Jan-Di Kim: The Korean judo fighter understandably covered her eyes following her loss to Giulia Qiuntavalle of Italy. Making the defeat even harder was the fact that the 21-year-old was eliminated in only the second round of competition.
10. Sa Jae-Hyouk: Talk about the agony of defeat. The Korean weightlifter would up screaming more than usual when his routine went horribly wrong and he wound up dislocating his elbow. Ouch!