The competition is getting younger, stronger and faster and Australia's Olympic beach volleyball veteran Natalie Cook is adamant there will be no more comebacks.
"The mind and the body needs a rest. Not a rest that I'm coming back from, but a rest forever," said 37-year-old Cook on Thursday.
Her fifth and final Olympics ended late on Wednesday night when she and partner Tamsin Hinchley posted a third straight pool match loss to exit winless.
The bubbly Cook, who won a bronze medal at the 1996 Atlanta Olympics and gold at the 2000 Sydney Games, did not enjoy the cold, late-night matches they were handed in London.
"Normally we play all day. So it was a bit of a shock to have three late-night matches," Cook said.
"The worst part was having to wear wet weather gear, because it was very cold and the wind was chilly ... you don't want to be focused on how your body temperature is while you're trying to compete."
Cook took 18 months off following her 2008 Beijing Olympics campaign, but rejected any notion that she could return again for Rio 2016 as a competitor.
"There is no room for you to relax in this environment where you try to be the best in the world. That takes an emotion, mental strength that I don't think I can sustain past last night ... so for me, it's over," she said.
However besides dedicating time to her business building beach volleyball courts, Cook has her sights set on an Olympic support role and admits to having already mentored fellow Australian Olympians.
"I'm addicted to the Olympic Games so I'm sure it will be pretty hard for them to keep me out," she said.
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