Those damned Olympic Gods, from Apollo to Zeus, Katarina Johnson-Thompson was starting to fear she'd wronged them somehow.
But Achilles prized bravery and Johnson-Thompson has that quality above all others, winning heptathlon silver to finally make the podium.
The two-time world champion has long had a difficult relationship with these Games, dating back to her teens.
With the focus all on Jess Ennis-Hill, there were little expectations when she made her debut in London but she still considers her sixth place in Rio a 'missed opportunity'.
Three years ago, in Tokyo, she was injured in the build-up, nursed herself through three events and then tore a calf muscle in the 200m.
She jogged across the line, to a smattering of applause in the empty stadium, only to be disqualified.
This season has been overshadowed by more injury struggles, including a withdrawal from the European Championships in Rome which made Paris her first heptathlon of the season.
Johnson-Thompson took a 121-point deficit into the decisive 800m, meaning she needed to beat Belgium's Nafi Thiam by an improbable almost nine seconds.
She recorded a huge 2:04.90 personal best but Thiam, who very nearly fell after 200m, was just under six seconds behind.
Johnson-Thompson's final score across the seven events was 6,844, the second best of her career.
"I can't even describe the words, I'm just so relieved and so happy to add an Olympic medal to my collection," said Johnson-Thompson.
"It's the only one I didn't have. It's been so hard getting back to this point. In the lead up to this Games, all I've been saying is I wanted to have a chance.
🤝 pic.twitter.com/HrEeMsyv0R
— Team GB (@TeamGB) August 9, 2024
"I can't complain, there was a chance of gold in that 800m but we both ran personal bests, so what more can you do?
"I wanted to compete and be able to respond. I knew I was in good shape physically, mentally and emotionally. I've proven to myself I have competitive energy when things gets tense. I'm just so happy with how everything went, I have no complaints."
It was a busy evening on the athletics track for Team GB, with earlier success seeing the women's and men's 4x100m relay teams secure silver and bronze respectively.
Dina Asher-Smith, Imani-Lara Lansiquot, Amy Hunt, and Daryll Neita combined to clock 41.85 seconds to upgrade on bronze in Tokyo whilst the men's quartet of Jeremiah Azu, Louie Hinchliffe, Nethaneel Mitchell-Blake and Zharnel Hughes ran a season’s best time of 37.61 to clinch third place.
"Twice in a row we had bronze and today we got silver," said Lansiquot. "We showed that we’re consistent, that we believe in ourselves and I’m so proud of us."
Mitchell-Blake added: "We're one of the best trained teams in the world so we always find a way to step up when it matters most."
Sportsbeat 2024