When the athletes of the world convene in Paris this summer for the games of the 33rd Olympiad, many will march in the opening ceremonies dreaming of gold.
But what happens when they fall just short?
We studied photos of 413 Olympic athletes taken during medal ceremonies between 2000 and 2016. The photos came from the Olympic World Library and Getty Images and included athletes from 67 countries. We also incorporated Sports Illustrated’s Olympic finish predictions, because we wanted to see whether athletes’ facial expressions would be affected if they had exceeded expectations or underperformed.
To analyze the photos, we used a form of artificial intelligence that detects facial expressions. By using AI to quantify the activation of facial muscles, we eliminated the need for research assistants to manually code the expressions, reducing the possibility of personal bias. The algorithm identified the shapes and positions of the athletes’ mouths, eyes, eyebrows, nose and other parts of the face that indicate a smile.
Even though second-place finishers had just performed objectively better than third-place finishers, the AI found that bronze medalists, on average, appeared happier than silver medalists.
Close but no cigar
So why does this happen?
The answer has to do with what psychologists call “counterfactual thinking,” which refers to when people envision what didn’t occur but could have happened.
With this thought process in mind, there are two main explanations for this medal stand phenomenon.
When the athletes of the world convene in Paris this summer for the games of the 33rd Olympiad, many will march in the opening ceremonies dreaming of gold.
Sen. Raphael Warnock of Georgia is working on a children’s book centered on a generous boy and a proliferating baloney sandwich and inspired by a Biblical miracle