Sometimes, it’s just not your day. Every sportsperson goes through this at a certain point in their lives. Mary Theisen-Lappen faced one such moment at the Paris Olympics. Competing in the 178-pound category at the Games, the superheavyweight lifter finished fifth overall, which crushed the 33-year-old’s winning plans.

Well, nobody would have thought of such an end to Theisen-Lappen’s Olympic stint. Especially as she was coming off a silver medal at the 2023 World Championships. But the Indiana State alumni fell marginally short on the grandest stage, even though she totaled 604 pounds, 262 in snatch, and 342 from jerk. Nonetheless, post-her defeat, visibly crestfallen, she has now hinted that this would be the end of her Olympic runs.

Paris 2024 Olympics – Weightlifting – Women’s +81kg – South Paris Arena 6, Paris, France – August 11, 2024. Mary Theisen Lappen of United States in action. REUTERS/Isabel InfantesAs per Indystar, Theisen-Lappen assured, “I definitely want to keep lifting.” This year, among all the women weightlifters at the Olympics, Lappen was the oldest. While she seems to have decided to take it one year at a time, the possibility of her return to the Olympic stage in LA seems farfetched. She says, “I’m not done, but I don’t know that I’ll lift until ’28.”

Theisen-Lappen may have switched to weightlifting just seven years ago, but she has done nothing but justice to the field ever since. She first competed in 2018 at the Team Spartacus Winter Open, and in two years, she had already proved her might as a lifter. But she wanted to bring home an Olympic medal, an aim that she had been striving to achieve for the past two years. Did you know that she particularly moved to Indiana to give wings to her Olympic dreams?

Mary Theisen-Lappen’s 2 years of struggle have a heart-rending end

In July 2022, Theisen-Lappen suffered sprains in both her ankles and also had a strained calf. It was during a mishap while practicing, as the weights had fallen on her legs. Just then, she had specially shifted to Bloomington for her Olympic training, but it seemed pear-shaped to her. In the next few months, she missed the 2022 World Championships, which was a doorway for her to qualify for the Olympic Games. But, unfortunately, she missed and had to wait until March 2023.

At the Pan American Championships, she shocked everyone by lifting 158 kg by jerk. And ultimately, she won by a total of 272 kg. The next stop was Doha, where she further notched it up a bar. At the International Weightlifting Federation Grand Prix II, she took it up to 283 kg. Eventually, after 18 months of rigorous work, she made it to the Olympic team. Even in Paris, her wait did not seem to end, as she was up for performing on the last day. However, unfortunately, the results did not go in her favor.

While she has the 2025 US Nationals on her mind now, it still remains uncertain if Mary Theisen-Lappen will return for the Summer Games at home. What do you think of her decision? Let us know below.