“Spanning the globe to bring you the constant variety of sport… the thrill of victory… and the agony of defeat… the human drama of athletic competition…” as American television program ABC Wide World of Sports used to open. Unfortunately, television broadcasters for the 2012 Summer Olympics in London, such as United States’ NBC and China’s state-operated CCTV, have all come under scrutiny for “sugar coating” these games. Now with the games officially over, here is a recap of all the pains and sufferings in the chase of Olympic motto “Faster, Higher, Stronger”. Though some of the captured images looked to be within TV’s Bloopers & Practical Jokes, instead the agony and embarrassments each athlete suffers says otherwise… Images via: NY Daily News

Lazaro Borges (Cuba) – Scary moment when the pole vaulter’s fiberglass pole broke into three

Raluca Izbasa (Romania) – Fell but still went on to win the gold

Stephan Feck (German) – Diver slipped off the diving board and landed flat on his back in the water.

Ksenia Afanasyeva (Russia) – Fell during her routine in floor exercise

Yelena Isinbayeva (Russia) – The pole vaulter just couldn’t clear the bar.

Olympic Cyclists – Major pile-up

Liu Xiang (China) – Hurdler’s dream dashed when he fell because of injury

Brooke Crain (USA) – American BMX rider crashed

Yoshiaki Oiwa (Japan) – Holding on after felling off the horse

Kohei Uchimura (Japan) – Fell off the pommel horse but still got the gold for best all-around

Jaehyouk Sa (South Korea) – The weightlifter twisted his elbow out and backwards

Alvaro Rodriguez (Spain) – Painful when the Spanish runner crashed face first during the 1500 meter

Matthias Steiner (Germany) – The weightlifter had 432 pounds of weight dropped on him. No medals but he’s alive to tell the tale.

Vania Stambolova (Bulgaria) – Tangled with hurdles during 400 meter hurdles race.

Gabrielle Douglas (USA) – America’s new sweetheart slipped during balance beam venue

McKayla Maroney (USA) – What was a sure bet for Gold…

McKayla Maroney (USA) – Turned out to be a silver and one of the most memorable expression…