Aug 7, 2024 - Sports

Second-place win or first-place loss? The psychology behind an Olympics silver medal

April Rubin

Simone Biles holds two medals around her neck — Simone Biles of Team United States poses with her Paris 2024 Olympic medals following the Artistic Gymnastics Women's Floor Exercise Final on day 10 of the Olympic Games Paris 2024 at Bercy Arena on Aug. 5. Photo: Naomi Baker/Getty Images

The U.S. has over two dozen silver medals going into the final week of the Olympics but whether second place is considered a win or loss is complicated for athletes.

Why it matters: Athletes who spend years preparing for their moment at the Olympics often find that second place is the hardest position to be in, if not in their own minds then from the reaction of fans and the media.

Case in point: U.S. track and field athlete Sha'Carri Richardson's silver medal was cast differently by various national headlines versus Noah Lyles winning his 100-meter dash.

The Washington Post: "Sha'Carri Richardson's redemption tale falls 0.15 seconds shy of perfection" and Slate: "Sha'Carri Richardson Did Not Fail"
NBC News: "Noah Lyles is the world's fastest man — thanks in part to his torso" and Sports Illustrated: "Noah Lyles Had Six-Word Message for America After Winning 100m Gold Medal"

What they're saying: "Getting silver is a great accomplishment," said Georgia Miller, a mental performance coach at Peak Performance Sports. "Even just making it to the Olympics is an accomplishment."

"But is it going to take time for them to find that perspective and see that bigger picture? Absolutely."

The intrigue: After placing, athletes can experience what's known as "counterfactual thinking." The process, spelled out in a 2021 study, happens when silver medalists compare themselves to those winning gold, while bronze medalists think about not placing at all.

"When you win bronze, it's like 'Heck, at least I got something. I got a medal,'" Miller said. "But with silver, you were so close to getting gold that you're going to have some of that natural disappointment."

Zoom in: Joel Fish, director of the Center for Sports Psychology in Philadelphia, said athletes should practice mental performance in addition to the physical part of their sport.

Identifying multiple goals and metrics for good performance helps mitigate feelings of "loss" from not placing gold, he said.
Some elite athletes would prefer to be underdogs going into a competition, rather than projected winners because they feel less pressure, Fish said.

State of play: Fish has worked with Olympians in field hockey, basketball, swimming, ice skating and baseball.

"There's the athlete's definition of what winning, losing, success, failure, competition mean," he said. "And then there's the outside world's definition."

Go deeper: Paris 2024 Summer Olympics medal tracker

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Second-place win or first-place loss? The psychology behind an Olympics silver medal

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