Sarah Lavin's Paris 2024 journey came to an end on Friday morning, as the Irish sprinter exited the 100m hurdles at the semi-final stage.
Lavin progressed from the heats earlier this week in impressive style but the competition was fierce for one of the eight spots in Saturday night's final.
Despite running a stellar 12.69 time only seven-thousandths of a second off her Irish national record, Lavin could only manage sixth in her semi-final heat, missing out on progression to the final.
Speaking to RTÉ's David Gillick trackside at the Stade de France, Lavin burst into tears as the emotion of her Olympic exit hit.
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Sarah Lavin in tears in touching interview after Olympic semi-final exit
She started off the Olympics as one of Ireland's flagbearers at the opening ceremony, and Sarah Lavin can now return from Paris with her head held high after a brilliant run to the semi-finals of the 100m hurdles.
She had to wait quite a while for her event to get underway, but she can be proud of her progression to the semi-finals.
"I have to be immensely proud... just today I'm not good enough " Sarah Lavin felt the eighth hurdle was costly in her 110m semi-final
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Despite the immense achievement of reaching an Olympic semi-final, Sarah Lavin was in tears speaking to David Gillick immediately after her race.
The Limerick woman tried to apologise to the Irish public for what she perceived as underperformance - a self-assessment Gillick was having none of.
Lavin said that she felt the eighth hurdle had been the pivotal moment of her run and shared her disappointment, saying she felt she had let Irish sports fans down.
I have to be immensely proud...it's tough.
It was going to be the best race I could put out today, up until the eighth hurdle. Gutting to go out like that, it's a mistake.
[There were] stellar runs...today I'm not good enough.
[There are] people are here for me and people mean so much to me. It's so beautiful and I can't thank people enough. Coming into a stadium like this and to have such a large roar behind you, it's incredible. I would have really loved to make them that extra bit proud today.
That's sport, and it is just sport...I'll look back on the race - maybe not today!
I gave everything I had for the last year, year-and-a-half, two years, three years...you know, last time I was at the Olympics I went 13.17. To be half a second quicker than that is special but I'm also a very different athlete mentally and physically.
I'm sorry to everyone at home.
David Gillick rightly shut down Sarah Lavin's attempt to apologise to the Irish public, with the pair sharing an embrace at the conclusion of the RTÉ interview.
It has been a challenging 18 months for Lavin, with her partner Craig Breen tragically passing away after a rallying accident last year.
For the 30-year-old to have shaved almost half a second off her time from the previous Olympics in Tokyo in such circumstances is a testament to her wonderful contribution to Irish athletics.
Hopefully, once this disappointment dissipates, Sarah Lavin will be able to appreciate the weight of her achievements in Paris.
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