Web tribute to Olympic losers

Britain's Derek Redmond, injured in the 1992 Games, gets a mention

Talk of gold medals and glory have dominated the Olympic Games in Athens recently, but what of the losers?

A Canadian blogger has dedicated a site to those athletes who secured their place in sporting history by coming last instead of first.

There is even a league table of nations with the most last places - currently topped by the next Games' host, China.

Blogger Jonathan Crowe, 32, of Quebec, insists the site is more about honouring the losers than mocking them.

"The site's light-hearted. It's trying to have a little fun but its emphatically not trying to make fun of anybody," he told the BBC's World Today programme.

"In fact, the point of the site essentially is to recognise the fact that even the worst finish at the Olympics is an order of magnitude better than anything the rest of us could do."

'Gallant losers'

While the Olympics is primarily about winning, notable previous losers have made it into Olympic history, such as the Jamaican bobsled team and Britain's Eddie 'The Eagle' Edwards ski-jumper.

Mr Crowe's blog also pays tribute to "gallant losers" of past Olympics, including Britain's 400-metre runner Derek Redmond who tore a hamstring at the 1992 Games in Barcelona.

"There are a lot of last place finishes out there," said Mr Crowe. "I'm tracking every single last place finish that I can find."

He says China's current lead in his inverse league table, with six last places, must be placed in context.

"Large countries tend to send large teams so statistically they are more likely to have somebody come in last," Mr Crowe said.