Olympics 2008

Yesterday, I asked you to name some Olympians who failed to live up to expectations.

Today, I'd like to hear about your nearly men (or women) - the ones who would have won a hatful of Olympic golds if it hadn't have been for the fact they were in the presence of greatness.

Take Britain's best-ever javelin thrower, Steve Backley, for example. He is the only British track and field athlete to win Olympic medals at three consecutive Games, but he famously failed to win gold.

And the reason he missed out? Jan Zelezny.

Aged just 23, Backley held the world record at 91.46m going into his first Games in Barcelona, but finished behind Czechoslovakia's Zelezny and Finland's Seppo Raty in third.

Four years later in Atlanta, Zelezny was again triumphant as Backley and Raty swapped places on the podium.

At the Sydney 2000 Games, Backley looked poised to bow out on a high after setting a new Olympic Record with his second throw of 89.95m.

But in the next round his old nemesis Zelezny hit back with a throw of 90.17m to confirm his place as the greatest javelin thrower of all time with his third victory.

Backley picked up four European and three Commonwealth javelin gold medals and two world championship silvers in a glittering 15-year career, but Olympic gold remained elusive.

Who are your nearly men of Olympic sport?