The Big Read: Pressures and temptations aplenty in sporting world, only a rare few can scale the peak and stay there

SINGAPORE: In the months after former national swimmer Tao Li sprinted her way to a fifth-place finish in the 100m butterfly event at the 2008 Beijing Olympics, the expectations for her to deliver a medal at her next outing weighed on her mind.

She is still the first and only Singaporean female swimmer to make it into the finals of a swimming event at the Olympics thus far. And being only 18 at that time, there were hopes that she could achieve a medal in the 2012 London edition of the Games, when she had matured further as an athlete.

However, the 32-year-old told TODAY that the expectations and pressures of reaching the top became too much for her.  

“Once you reach the top, many things can distract you, and then you’re not focusing as much anymore, and you don’t want to take that much pain anymore, you don’t want to train that hard anymore, and then things will just change, immediately," she said.

“If over the course of one year, you’re still out of the top eight (swimmers) in the world, then that’s it. You won’t just get back to where you should be anymore."

Sure enough, the years between the two Olympics were turbulent for her, with several coaching disruptions and a dip in form. 

Though she improved her pool timings before the 2012 Games, it could only guarantee her a 10th place finish in the 100m butterfly, which did not earn her a spot in the finals.

But Tao is not one to wallow in pity or rue the missed opportunity, as she knows better than anyone else that the world of elite sports is a ruthless, unforgiving one, where failures abound and success is rare. 

To her, what matters is that she tried her best. 

“Everyone’s perspective is different ... some fans will say that national swimmers should try to break the world