"I’m not worried about the gold medallists in women’s ice hockey. They will be free to tell any story they want, or no story at all—a gold medal is complete in itself. It’s an easy symbol. But a silver medal needs some explaining. Haunting and changeable, winter dusk in small-town Canada, where I write this, is silver. The silver medal reminds me of a pocket mirror. When silver medallists look down, do they catch glimpses of themselves? Do they stare for a long time or look away, wondering what second place really means?"