Unfortunately since I work at night, I wasn't able to see the Chinese women's team beat Cuba 3-1 for the Bronze medal this morning. However, reading flash quotes and press conference highlights that my colleagues have collected, I realize that I missed out on something special.
Cheng Zhonghe, the head coach of the Chinese team is usually a mild-mannered guy, someone who rarely ever shows emotion win or loss was reported to have been sobbing uncontrollably after China won the match.
When asked why he was crying, he was quoted to have said:
"It was such a tough game. Many of our players have injries, especially the old players. They have experienced a lot of setbacks. Unfortunately we didn't realise my goal - to get into the final. But I know that it's really not easy for the players, so I'm very proud of them."
It just shows how special these games actually are. When a team can still be excited and giddy about winning a Bronze medal, after being the previous Gold medal team, you know how much it means to these athletes and coaches.
The USA women played valiantly against Brazil tonight, but they lost 3-1. Brazil has been especially impressive as they haven't dropped a single set comming into this match. So as a consolation prize, the US women are the first team to win a set against Brazil. Even with the silver medal, I believe the team surpassed their expectations and while they aren't Gold medalists, I still think they're quite satisfied with their result.
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