The One Bermuda Alliance and the United Bermuda Party have both hailed the work of Bermuda’s Olympic athletes.In a statement, Kim Swan of the UBP said both he and his colleague Charlie Swan were proud of Bermudian’s efforts in London.“We see their efforts as an example to all Bermudians, especially the children of our country, that with desire, hard work and discipline they also can be vying for gold,” Mr Swan said.“Through the efforts of our athletes we see these games and the build up to them as a means to bring our people together and inspire our youth.”Mr Swan said that Bermuda should now set their sights on building Bermudian talent for future Olympic Games by ensuring that talented athletes are granted the right opportunities and financial support.“Our Olympic athletes have represented us well and set the stage for a greater national focus on the development of the vast sporting talent that we have in Bermuda,” Mr Swan said.“These performances in diverse disciplines are encouraging and suggest to us that our people are talented. We would direct our focus to our primary schools, which contain prime candidates for development into fine athletes.“We have seen this done before in track and field in Bermuda and are pleased to see the progress currently being made — let it continue.”Mr Swan also noted the national swimming pool project as one which could benefit Bermudian athletes and recommended that sailing become a national sport, noting that the Island has the right environment to develop an internationally acclaimed sailing academy.“Bermuda has a natural advantage in sporting pursuits that revolve around the water,” Mr Swan said. “We should make the most of that advantage.”OBA Leader Craig Cannonier also said he was proud of Bermuda’s performance in the Olympic Games.“They carried the flag with pride and enthusiasm and they competed with grit, confidence and character against the best in the world,” Mr Cannonier said.“A great effort! Their example of hard work, commitment, ambition is one we can build on for the future.“Whatever their individual competition experience, I am sure the team’s time in London will have enriched their lives. That is something to be thankful for and to cherish. We look forward to their return.”While Bermuda was unable to earn a medal in any event, the Island’s athletes put up a hard fight against international competition.Long jumper Tyrone Smith earned 12th place in his event after reaching the finals with his best jump of the season.Equestrian Jill Terceira narrowly missed the cut for the third show jumping qualifier by a single point, while long jumper Arantxa King lost her chance at claiming the final qualifying shot after tying with Veronika Shutkova of Belarus.Freestyle swimmer Roy-Allan Burch shattered his own previous national record, but missed out on reaching the semi-finals by two-tenths of a second, finishing in 24th place.Triathletes Tyler Butterfield and Flora Duffy finished in 34th place and 45th place respectively, with an early crash ending Ms Duffy’s medal hopes. Mr Butterfield ended the swimming section in a disappointing position, but made impressive headway in the cycling section, producing the fastest cycle time in the race.Sailors Jesse and Zander Kirkland were able to achieve four top ten finishes in their Olympic debut, but a series of poor finishes left them at 19th in the 20-boat standings.