PARIS — At the Olympic Games, the winners vault to the podium, the anthems are sung, the awards are presented. At night, they join the parade of the medalists at Champions Park beneath the Eiffel Tower.

But what becomes of the less swift, the less altius, the less strong?

Where do the losers go?

Mayra Alexandra Gaviria Maldonado is walking toward the marketplace at the Olympic Village. The shopping plaza is noticeably quieter than it was when the Games began. Fourteen days of competition are behind us. Only three more remain. Most of the athletes have returned to Azerbaijan or Namibia or the Solomon Islands.