Saying
Who is the unluckiest person in Olympic history? Probably Matthew Emmons.
Born in 1981 in New Jersey, Matthew Emmons is one of the best athletes in American shooting history, but he is also america's most unlucky Olympian.
Emmons competed in three consecutive Olympic games, only to fall on the final shot of the rifle final: one off target, two low rings, and ceded china's Jia Zhanbo, Qiu Jian, and South Korea's Kim Jong-hyun to become Olympic champions.
His luck is really bad!
At the 2004 Athens Olympic Games, Emmons, who loved skiing and hunting, participated in the Olympic Games for the first time, and he was not nervous, but also full of confidence, and seemed to be bound to win an Olympic gold medal.
Time passed, and it came to the final of the 50-meter rifle three postures, the atmosphere was very solemn and quiet, and the players were debugging their rifles and adjusting their mentality.
Emmons played perfectly in his first nine, almost unkempt, in perfect form, as he expected, and he even extended his lead to 3 rings. As long as he plays normally, he has almost held the gold medal in his hand.
His biggest competitor is China's veteran Jia Zhanbo, who is in a very calm mood at this time, after all, he is experienced.
However, God made a joke for Emmons.
Before the last shot, he was very familiar with the process of preparing, raising the gun, aiming, shooting, and 10 seconds later, when the referee announced: Emmons's 10th shot was off target, and the result was 0 rings.
At this moment, Emmons was already blindfolded, standing in the same place, he couldn't believe his eyes, and he felt a little chagrin in his heart: "How could I make such a low-level mistake?" ”
In the end, It made China's veteran Jia Zhanbo win the gold medal.
After the game, Emmons teammate Andy still had eyes in disbelief: "Evans is the best shooter I've ever met, I don't know how many shots he shot in the end, but I think it should be around 10 rings." ”
After losing the gold medal, Emmons walked out of the game in frustration and came to the bar near the shooting range.
As he sat in front of the bar, a beautiful woman with blond hair approached him. The woman said she had witnessed Emmons's defeat and comforted him.
After a brief exchange, Emmons learned that the woman's name was Katerina Kurkova, a Czech female shooter.
After that, they fell in love, and a transnational love affair in the Olympic arena was quietly born.
The unlucky Emmons missed the target in the final, but was accidentally shot by Cupid's love arrow, which is really a heart to plant flowers and flowers, and there is no intention to plant willows.
In 2007, they married and achieved a good story at the Olympic Games - the golden boy and the jade girl were married.
Emmons, who had harvested love, joked: "If I had known that I would have met Caterina at the Olympics, I would have chosen to deflect the first shot." ”
At the 2008 Beijing Olympic Games, husband and wife competed together. Caterina is not only a contestant, but also a TV commentator.
Time once again came to the 50m rifle three-position final, and Emmons still played perfectly in the first nine times, 3 rings ahead of his opponents.
And his competitor is still a Chinese player, but a different person, Qiu Jian.
On the last shot, Emmons made another low-level mistake: the 10th shot, 4.4 rings.
On the television booth, his wife, Caterina, couldn't believe what was happening in front of her. The same plot, the same mistakes, the same Chinese players won the gold medal, after four years of history repeating.
After the game, they did a classic scene from the Beijing Olympics in front of the stands: Caterina hugged Emmons's head with her hand, with a smile on her face, and her eyes were soft as water, while the latter bowed his head and did not say a word, they were silent, snuggled, for a long time.
In the cruel and tense Olympic arena, their true feelings have also become the most moving scenery, and this shot has been passed down to this day. However, compared to the results of the competition, the emotional moment behind the scenes may surpass the gold medal itself, and also reflect the Olympic spirit.
Thus, the name Matthew Emmons was well known by Chinese, and netizens gave him a joyful nickname: Chinese min's old friend.
In 2010, Emmons unfortunately contracted cancer, his entire thyroid gland was removed by doctors, and after a fierce psychological struggle, he returned to the field.
"I can only live so long in the world, maybe I will die tomorrow, maybe I will live to be 80 years old, but the philosophy in my life is to always do my best while I am alive." 」 Emmons said after overcoming the disease.
In 2012, at the London Olympics, Emmons made another mistake, and the Olympic gold medal was taken away by South Korea's Kim Jong-hyun. Since he had cancer, he also looked away and did his best.
Now, mr. and Mrs. Emmons have four children, and the family is happy.
Emmons recalled: "If I hadn't made a mistake, I probably wouldn't have met my wife, everything was arranged by Heaven." Past defeats, accidents, and the process of dealing with them have enriched my life and sports career, and may be far more fulfilling than the life I lived after winning those gold medals. I'm healthy, I have a family, and these are all more meaningful presences than competitive sports. ”
Although Matthew Emmons may be the unluckiest athlete in Olympic history, he has received the most precious wealth of his life, that is, a love marriage and a happy family.