It was apparent very early on Eric wasn't in his groove. He was struggling hitting the yellow and he just seemed rattled. He ended up loosing to Tuchinov 2-6. Eric then moved into the Bronze medal bracket. If he won that match, against another Russian he would win the Bronze. If not he would finish 4th.
The bronze medal match started 30 minutes later and he faced Mikhail Oyun. I was hoping that in that short amount of time, he would be able to compose himself and figure it out. This is his entrance for the Bronze medal match.
Unfortunately Eric never did find his groove, until the very last arrow of the match when he shot a 10. My heart just sank and I knew Eric was going to be very disappointed.
When Eric came out we just embraced. He kept saying, "I was so close". All I could think of to tell him was that the reason he was able to get so close is because he had come so far. I tried to remind him that he finished better than in China, but the wound was too raw. He needed to go put all his equipment away and I knew he would need some alone time.
The Russians took the podium: gold, silver and bronze. The Russians were the ones to beat.
We had a lot of time to wait at that point because two of his teammates were competing later that afternoon in medal matches as well. So we went out and got some lunch. Despite his loss, so many people still came up to Eric and told them how much they were rooting for him; how they were proud of him; telling him it's not fair that he had to compete against people with two arms :) It was a good reminder that no matter the outcome, people are proud of who you are and what you accomplish. The cutest was when a little 4 year old boy ran over to our table to tell him good job. Something someone else told him, that I thought was very true was "Good shooting, bad luck". That pretty much summed it all up.
After lunch, I went into the stadium, while Eric went to the athlete zone and updated his facebook. I wanted him to be the first to comment, so sorry for anyone who was waiting for me to find a friend to share their wifi with me. This was Eric's response.
"Those dang Russians! My semi final loss was to the #1 ranked archer in the world, the current world record holder, and now the Paralympic gold medalist. My bronze medal match loss was to the #2 ranked archer and the former world record holder. If you have to lose, that's the way to go out. I couldn't find my groove today but tried my best. My final shot with my recurve was a ten but it wasn't enough. I can't thank all of enough for all your support and kind words. It means the world to myself and Rachel. I only wish I had some hardware to bring home. I can't wait to see everyone when I get home. Thanks again to all of you for giving me and my wife this opportunity."
That afternoon we got to see his teammate Jeff Fabry get the gold and Matt Stutzman get the silver in their divisions, so that was exciting. On my way down the hill to the tube station, I stopped to take a picture of the Royal Artillery Barracks. It was built between 1776 and 1802 and is just amazing. I had pleasure of looking at it everyday I left the archery venue.
Matt Stutzman (Eric's roommate) is sponsored by one of the official sponsors of the Paralympic games, BP and we were very lucky to get invited to his celebratory dinner that night. We didn't end up getting to the restaurant until almost 9:30pm and it was at the fanciest restaurant I have ever been to. It was in downtown London, about 10 minutes away from my hotel. It was called Clos Maggiore and was a French restaurant. It was one of those fancy restaurants that only had one menu for the evening and you get served whatever they are serving. What to know what was on the menu and what I ate???
Hand Picked Devon Crab & Marjoram Remoulade
Caramelized Honey Glazed Gressingham Duck Breast
English Raspberry Eton Mess
Coffee (water for me) & Petit Fours
I was brave and tried everything and actually enjoyed it! I LOVED the Eton Mess and if I didn't think it would have been rude, I would have taken a picture of it! :) I tried finding a picture online, but none would even do it justice. It was just beautifully presented and tasted divine. For those who know Eric, you're probably wondering how he survived the evening. He pushed the food around on his plate to look like he ate the appetizer. He ate the duck breast, but didn't eat the dessert because of the fruit. :( Again, if it hadn't of been rude, I would have eaten his too! We were in the company of several BP big wigs, family of a couple other athletes sponsored by BP, and Matt's family. It was seriously such an honor to be there with them as Matt presented his silver medal to them and as both Eric and Matt received a toast for their accomplishment as Paralympic athletes. We enjoyed each other's company until midnight, when they called us a car to accompany us back to the hotel. What an amazing evening to what started out as a very difficult day. Thank you BP and Matt Stutzman for letting us be there with you!
To finish out this post, I too must thank EVERYONE who has made it possible for Eric and I to be here. There is no way we could have done it without you. The only positive thing about Eric being done is that we are now able to spend time together and do our touring. We are very much looking forward to the next few days together.
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