An Olympic-size burden, one that kept Malaythong awake at night, kept him worried, quiet and reserved.
Here, Israel is known as a lonely nation, strapped with a solemn Olympic past, burdened by the horror of 11 athletes and coaches murdered at the Munich Games in 1972.
In the Pistorius case, under the rules for inclusion in the Olympic games the burden of proof had been on the IAAF, not the athlete, to demonstrate the presence of an advantage provided by technology.
Nadja Drygalla, a member of the women's eight crew, planned to leave the Olympic village to avoid any "burden for the Olympic team," said Michael Vesper, general director of the national Olympic association.
"I want her to keep the Olympic budget from growing, to reduce the burden on Tokyo residents".
Whilst it is great that there is enthusiasm for our medal prospects in Beijing and we will all be right behind our Olympic team, we should not seek to burden our athletes with excessive expectations.
Imagine, for a brief moment, having to perform at the highest level of competition as an Olympic and/or professional athlete while carrying the burden, stress and heaviness of being in the closet.
A second-hand stadium can be a burden, as the two most recent Olympic cities have learned.
Overbuilding, cost overruns and the expensive maintenance of world-class but rarely used venues — the chronic Olympic "legacy" issues — have long been a financial burden for host cities.
Not that I would wish the financial burden that stems from being an Olympic host, but downtown San Francisco would make a great visual center for the 2012 Summer Games.
