Patrick Tiernan wasn't go to die wondering.
Eight days after finishing stone-motherless last in the 10,000m final at the world athletics championships, the Australian bravely went to the front with five laps to go in Saturday's 5000m decider.
Even more surprisingly, the 22-year-year-old Tiernan built his lead to as much as 15 metres and stayed there for three and half laps - with the likes of Mo Farah and a host of Ethiopians in his wake.
That they finally reined him in with 650 metres to run was hardly a shock.
Neither was the fact that he eventually faded to finish 11th in a race which will be bettered remembered for Ethiopian Muktar Edris spoiling Farah's major championships farewell.
Tiernan knows it sounds somewhat silly.
But he was in it to win it.
"I don't think I quite executed it right - I probably should have gradually picked it up as I went," he said.
"I don't have any regrets.
"At the end of the day I probably could have hung back a little bit and waited, but you've got to give it a good crack and I came here to try and win a gold medal.
"As unrealistic as it sounds, that's what you come here to do."
"You give it your best shot and I did that today."
In other action, countryman Cedric Dubler was 18th in the decathlon.
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