You go to competitions NOT to be in competition with others but to be in competition with yourself! You do the very best you can and IF that precipitates into getting a medal or another accolade then that's a bonus.
Competitions are not won in the competition hall they are won in the training hall. The competition is a reflection of what happens day in day out at training sessions, conditioning session and at home.
Finally success and improvement aren't achieved by how much a coach encourages an athlete but by how much that athlete pushes themselves outside their comfort zone.