One of the mentors for Australia's athletes in London has conceded a disappointing opening week at the Olympics has weighed on everyone in the camp.
Layne Beachley, a seven-time surfing world champion, was one of four sporting greats employed to help motivate the Australian team.
Speaking in London overnight, she said everyone had been jolted by a campaign that has, so far, yielded just one gold medal.
"We have gold medallists in our team and we're not fulfilling our potential and it's disappointing and it's heartbreaking," she said.
"It's causing a lot of dissension, but ultimately these kids are going to learn a lot from it."
Beachley said the pain of the opening week had been punctuated by freestyle swimmer James Magnussen's 100m final, that he lost by just 0.01secs.
"It weighs on all of us because we all feel like we're letting everybody down.
"I can't explain it from the athlete's point of view because they're the ones that are going out there, they're the ones who have put in four years of training and the preparations and they've performed so well in events leading up to this and then they've gone out and let themselves down and it's really hard to deal with that."
Beachley, who is helping guide Australia's athletes alongside cricket champion Steve Waugh, rugby great John Eales and former swimmer Kieren Perkins, says it is up to Australia's athletes to turn around their fortunes.
"What doesn't kill you, makes you stronger. I know it's a classic cliche but these guys have got to pick themselves up and dust themselves off and keep going for it, because they're the best in the world."
"They've been identified as the best talent this nation has and they have what it takes to win gold and they've just got to keep going.
"If there's one thing my career told me, you've just got to back yourself and believe in your ability and you've just got to never give up."
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