By The Editor

With a second Olympic gold medal and a new Olympic record already hers, Yelena Isinbayeva was ready to put on the show the fans really wanted. And the Russian pole vault diva had the spotlight all to herself.

The final track event on the programme, the men's 400m hurdles, had finished, as well as the other field events. Isinbayeva was all alone.

"It felt like I was a famous singer or actress," the Russian star would tell the large group of reporters that had waited late into the night to hear her talk about setting yet another world record in the women's pole vault.

"I had the whole stage only for me. It's so cool."

What is the Olympics but just a giant stage?

We pay to watch, or get paid to write about, these well-trained athletes who prepare for years for their ultimate showtime. Instead of learning lines, they drill their bodies countless times to perform on cue. In Hollywood, a good performance gets you good reviews, perhaps an Oscar. At the Olympics, medals are the standard of excellence.

The biggest difference, of course, is that the Olympics come around only once every four years. You take your best shot or wait around for the next one. And this ain't like waiting for a bus.

It is this four-year cycle that gives the Olympics its mystique. It is short enough that an athlete can take part in several over their careers, but long enough to separate the flukes from the greats.

The medal podiums are filled daily with athletes who have put everything in place to peak in the Olympic year. Some were expected, others not. As impressive as it is to win an Olympic gold medal even once, the true sign of greatness is to sustain that level for another four years and do it again.

Michael Phelps' eight gold medals in swimming, seven coming in world-record time, is without question the single-greatest feat in Olympic history--for which he will earn a Hollywood-like payoff for endorsements. One industry analyst estimated Phelps' Beijing venture will net him between US$30 million and $50 million.

All this came after Phelps nearly did it four years ago in Athens, from which he came away with six gold medals and eight overall. His 14 golds are already the most in Olympic history. Just 23, he's already looking for new challenges.

Phelps reached his goals. Many others did not. But given the high stakes of the Olympics, it's not hard to understand why stars such as Paula Radcliffe and Liu Xiang would attempt to compete when they were obviously not 100 per cent.

Radcliffe had rushed her recovery from a thigh stress fracture to run in the women's marathon, while Liu, nursing a painful Achilles tendon, could barely walk, much less defend his title in the men's 110m hurdles.

While Radcliffe struggled just to finish, Japan's Reiko Tosa hobbled for over 15km kilometers on an aching foot, the pain visible on her face with each step, until her husband and coach pulled her off the course.

Liu, who already has an Olympic gold medal, had desperately wanted to give his country one in its own Olympics. That dream ended before he ever got over the first hurdle as he pulled out after a false start in the first qualifying round.

As long as they didn't risk permanent damage, giving it a shot was their only option. Four years is too long to wonder, as Radcliffe said, "What if...?"

While she got her answer, as painful as it was, one has to wonder what Mizuki Noguchi is thinking now.

It's doubtful the 2004 Olympic marathon champion would ever second-guess her coach and corporate sponsor, but she must realise that at the very least, she should have waited until race day to pull out instead of announcing a week ahead of time.

The race-time temperatures were cooler than expected, which would have favoured her, and the pace was slow, which would have been less of a burden on the strained muscle that had hampered her training.

Will she someday regret missing the chance to become the first woman in history to win consecutive Olympic marathons? Of not even giving it a shot?

The stage was set.

Nobody ever won an Oscar or an Olympic medal in their living room.