With competition distance, road cycling is certainly the longest, with a 158km race at the 2024 Paris Olympics. Nguyen Thi That is a Vietnamese athlete participating in this race. When competing alone, the chance of a 31-year-old rider reaching the top is almost zero, let alone competing for a medal.
However, the An Giang racer also had his own victory when he reached the finish line safely. It may sound funny, but it's true if you know that the 158km journey the riders go through has many steep passes, requiring physical strength and endurance. There were 93 athletes participating in this event, 78 of them finished safely, Nguyen Thi That ranked 73rd. There were riders from China, Korea, UAE, Malaysia, and Afghanistan who could not even finish.
With that said, rankings won't mean much. On the contrary, just being 1 of 6 Asian cyclists, 1 of 2 athletes from Southeast Asia (with Phetdarin Somrat of Thailand) reaching the finish line carries the meaning of victory after overcoming many obstacles. .
Bicycle racing is not inherently peaceful, but many people imagine that, on the way, there are many obstacles and potential variables that occur - bike breakdown, accidents, injuries...
If Nguyen Thi That's story is about reaching the finish line in a literal sense, then Novak Djokovic's victory in tennis is a kind of finishing line for a glorious career but missing the puzzle piece called the Olympic gold medal .
Nole has been diligently searching for that golden color in his career and it seemed like it would forever be impossible when he clashed with Carlos Alcaraz in the final. But Djokovic did it, at the end of his career.
