Diver Cheong Jun Hoong has willed herself to carry on numerous times but the odds were always against her.
Following the National Sports Council (NSC)'s decision to reduce the number of full-time athletes from 432 to 288 due to funding cuts, the 2017 world champion found herself axed from the national programme with her contract not renewed.
And the Perakian recognised that it was time to call it quits as she announced her retirement from the sport in a Facebook post on Monday.
Ironically, this came after Jun Hoong successfully overcame a career-threatening knee injury in 2018 after undergoing surgery that laid her out for nearly three years.
The 31-year-old, however, never gave up and trained hard to return to competitions.
She made her comeback at the World Cup and the Tokyo Olympics last year, but the long layoff affected her as she was unable to dive to her full potential and failed to reach the final at the Olympics.
"I have always believed that one should remain humble despite success and persevere despite failure," said Jun Hoong.
"And therefore I accept my recent failure with open arms.
"Since my second surgery in 2018, I had focused solely on my recovery and mustered the courage to get back on the diving platform with a view to do my very best at the Olympics despite the numerous obstacles.
"But I must admit that it was most regretful that I had not been able to perform ideally in the competition despite my best efforts.
"After the Olympics, I remained confident that I would be able to get back on my feet as I am getting used to my injuries and age is only just a number.
"While I had remained committed to continue representing Malaysia, I must accept that my contract with NSC will not be renewed.
"And with that, I am officially announcing my retirement.
"I would, however, like to express my gratitude to NSC, the Sports Ministry and the Olympic Council of Malaysia for their support throughout the years, as without them I would not be where I am today.
"I also have a lot of gratitude to the National Sports Institute, for their doctors, rehabilitation physiotherapists, counsellors and all other staff for their support and encouragement throughout every step of my career."
Jun Hoong will exit as one of the most decorated divers to have ever put Malaysia on the world map in diving.
Besides her 2017 world title, Jun Hoong is also a silver medallist at the 2016 Rio Olympics and a gold medallist at the 2018 Commonwealth Games.
She also has a silver and two bronze medals from the Asian Games, and is a six-time Sea Games gold medallist.
With Jun Hoong the second senior diver to announce her retirement after Leong Mun Yee since the Olympics, Sarawakian Pandelela Rinong is now the most senior member of the national diving team.