Bruno de Barros is on the verge of finally getting an Olympic medal.
It will be more than eight years late arriving, and it is bronze — not gold or silver.
None of this matters one bit to the Brazilian.
Photo: AP
Jamaica earlier this week were stripped of their gold medal in the 4x100m relay at the 2008 Olympics in Beijing when one runner — Nesta Carter — was found guilty of doping. That moved Brazil up to bronze, although Jamaica might consider an appeal.
“It’s a great sense of happiness, despite the time lapse, which isn’t really important,” De Barros told reporters. “The feeling of being an Olympic medalist is the same. In fact, after waiting so long it’s worth more.”
Three others on the relay team also pick up bronze medals — Jose Carlos Moreira, Sandro Viana and Vicente Lenilson.
Lenilson is the only one with a previous Olympic medal, having won silver in the 4x100m in 2000 in Sydney.
Despite a population of 200 million and a talent base that shows off in soccer, Brazil have been an also-ran in track and field. They earned only one medal in track and field six months ago at the Rio de Janeiro Olympics — gold in the pole vault for Thiago da Silva.
Officials at the Brazilian Athletics Confederation said it might be months before the men get their medals.
The 30-year-old De Barros is not worried about fancy protocol, or being awarded the long-awaited medal at an anthem-playing ceremony. He just wants to get his hands on it and hopes to win another in in Tokyo.
“I’ll simply be thrilled to have this first one,” De Barros said.
“I think I’m still in my prime for this sport,” he said.
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