Under 100 days to The Olympic Games

This week saw the mark of 100 days until the London 2012 Olympic games!

It’s now less than 100 days before an estimated 4 billion people, or around two thirds of the planet, cast their watchful eye over our capital city to see the Olympic flame being lit.

Knowing I’ll be amongst the 500 athletes competing for Team GB is still sinking in.  I really do appreciate what a privileged position I am in, and it’s one I’m determined to take full advantage of.  Having an Olympics in your country happens once in a blue moon; the chance of being an athlete at the top of your game when that blue moon comes around is a one in a million.

After the qualifying trials in London I took a small break: 4 days off to recharge the batteries and refocus on the next competition, The London Olympic Games!  My fiancée Claire and I went to north Devon for a long weekend with the dogs during the week of blistering British sunshine and glorious temperatures.  It was the first time either of us had been to north Devon since we were children and it is truly beautiful. We had a lovely time and it was just what we needed. 

On returning from Devon I had to re-evaluate what I wanted to achieve this summer.  At the trials I was so focussed on making the team that nothing else mattered.  As soon as the box was ticked, both eyes turned immediately to The Games.  My objective now is to grasp the Olympic opportunity as fully as I can, giving every last drop of effort between now and The Games in our mission to win a medal.

With a new target in mind, I faced the dreaded task all athletes hate: getting back into shape.  The past three weeks have been what I can only describe as painful, thanks to a remit of increasing strength, speed and fitness. We do this by employing a range of various, not always textbook methods, to get us fit, keep us sharp and keep us interested.

Swimming can be a very lonely sport so mixing things up helps to keep us mentally stimulated.  Trampolining is great for a cardio workout as well as toning core muscles.  It’s been surprising to find that bouncing around on a bit of cloth attached to some springs is genuinely much harder than it looks.

It’s been an enjoyable month out of the pool too. 

Like most people, I occasionally find myself in situations where I don’t belong: some of them good, some not so good.  A couple of weeks ago I was invited along with Claire to the World Premier of the Titanic 3D film.  I had no idea what to expect but was blown away to find myself walking down the red carpet, rubbing shoulders with the likes of Kate Winslet and James Cameron, the Oscar-winning director of Titanic and Avatar.  It felt like it shouldn’t happen to a boy from Belper, Derbyshire!  Besides being in 3D, the film was exactly the same as it was 15 years ago, but the evening was magical.

I also managed to witness my boyhood football team Derby County beat our local rivals Nottingham Forest.  It was a great match and memorable night because it was the first time Derby had beaten Forest in both the home and away matches for 40 years. That night I was invited by the Derby County board to watch the match from the Directors’ box and apparently I was sitting directly behind Tulisa, a judge from the X-factor.  If I’d known I would have asked for a photo.

With a little more time to spare this month, the wedding plans have started falling into place, which is a welcome distraction from the hours and hours of training.  One thing we managed to do was create the “Save the date cards”, with a little help from the dogs. What you can’t see on the picture is a piece of rump steak hanging in the air to get their attention.

Next up is a new phase of training.  Lucky for me, this will be out in Florida!

Thanks for your continued support.

Team GB qualification the bright spot of mixed fortunes

Qualification week was always set to be a highly emotional, stress-packed time, and so it turned out..

Olympic trials are often the hardest competition any athlete will take part in. So much is at stake because failure means redemption isn’t possible for at least another four years.

Feeling that you can’t put your personal shortcomings right for at least another four years is one thing, but missing out on representing your country at the greatest sporting event in the world is altogether another.  For winners and qualifiers it’s the greatest week of their lives, but for everybody else it can be soul-destroying. 

My Olympic trials were filled with mixed emotions.  While I frustratingly didn’t perform to the standard I know I can – and have – performed, I still qualified for what will be my third and most important Olympic games.

For some reason it just didn’t happen for me.  I went into the week with great confidence and sailed through the heats and semi-final with little problem, even managing to ease back in both rounds.  By the time the final came around, I was looking to win and feeling able to win it.  But win it I didn’t, with fourth place the outcome. 

Although in finishing fourth I qualified for a place in the relay team, which was my qualification contingency plan.  The primary objective for the week was to qualify for Team GB at the London Olympic Games and that is ultimately what I achieved. 

Pic courtesy of GBSwimstars

To say I’m relieved is an understatement.  The pressure of making the team is now off.  With two Olympic Games under my belt, I’ve been in this position before and know that the next six months are full of opportunity and enjoyment. It’s why as athletes we do what we do, to work hard but also enjoy what it brings.

This isn’t to say I’ll be taking my foot off the gas.  If anything, not earning the individual spot has made me more determined to make the relay team the best it possibly can be. We currently have a really talented relay team and I believe with strong support we can be right up there competing.  One thing is for sure: capacity crowds of 17,500 in the new National Aquatic Centre will make our job much easier.  If the support of the crowd and of the nation gives us just a fraction of a second extra, it could make all the difference.  I genuinely believe the crowd can do this!

This year all the usual pressures have been magnified tenfold.  Going to an Olympic games is an outstanding achievement in its own right, but to qualify for an Olympic Games in your home country is literally a once in a lifetime opportunity.  To be at your physical peak at a time when your country hosts the most prestigious sporting event in the world, that simply doesn’t happen for most athletes.  

Everyone in Team GB now has the responsibility to do our country proud, to wear the colours of the Union Jack with integrity and perform to the best of our abilities.

Thanks should be given to everyone who helped put on a world-class event for the Olympic trials.  I hope all the volunteers now feel apart of our journey because without them we wouldn’t have this amazing opportunity.  Hats off to you all, the unsung stars of the show.

Thanks too to everyone who has followed and supported me – not just in the past 6 months but throughout my career.  Without your help and support I wouldn’t have reached where I am today.

The journey is only just hotting up and I hope you’ll stick with me for the ride. London here I come!

Crunch time is almost here

With the Olympic trials now just around the corner, the result of the past seven months of long hard slog, sweat and tears, will soon be known.  In or out.

All the talking will fade and swimming will start to make the noise.

A couple of weeks ago I returned home from another training camp, this time in Tenerife.  Facilities in Tenerife are some of the best in the world for all sports and it certainly helps having a 12-month summer. 

Most of my winter has been spent outside of the UK in sunnier surroundings, mainly in a bid to keep healthy and free of viruses.  As a result our whole Loughborough squad has avoided illness and injury, and we’re looking in great shape.

It’s been really great working and training with the best swimmers in Britain.  We all motivate and inspire each other every day to push the boundaries and do Great Britain proud.  Hopefully we can all qualify, before marching onto London in the summer and bringing home silverware (goldware)!

But first comes qualification.  During one week at the British Championships, goals will be achieved and dreams will be shattered in the effort to represent Great Britain at our home Olympic Games.

Personally I can’t wait to get to London and see the venue where the greatest stars of the aquatic world will converge in little over five months.  I’m also thrilled at the prospect of competing in the Olympic Pool and having the opportunity to qualify for Team GB.

All the training is done.  The last seven months have been physically and emotionally demanding.  Now it’s time to put my feet up as much as possible, fine tune the skills and prepare mentally for what will be a highly charged and stressful week.  Hopefully it will end in ecstasy.

The past season has gone really well and I’m happy with my performance in the competitions and with the training.  Now it comes down to putting it all together in 200 metres.

Thank you to everyone who has helped, supported and followed me through this journey, including the guys at TBS Enterprise Mobility who have helped me to communicate with you through social media. I really hope you've enjoyed the ride so far, and that it continues into the summer. Your support really is priceless.

Many thanks.

Happy New Year!

As The Big Year arrived, everything suddenly became much more real..

So 2012 is finally here.  As soon as big Ben struck 12am and the fireworks began, the London Olympic Games appeared to take a giant step closer. In that second the Olympic games became very, very real!

Whilst watching the rockets and colour light up the London skyline for what seemed like an eternity, I was flooded with a sense of extreme pride, excitement and nerves.

In that 11 minutes London was watched by millions of people around the world, giving us an insight into the levels of attention we can expect for the duration of the Games. The streets of London crammed with people, an event expertly showcased by a globally leading city, an atmosphere the rest of the world is stunned by, and a buzz which can overwhelm the fiercest cynics.  

Christmas was a very quiet affair for me this year, with only a couple of days off training over the festive period. It’s hard not being able to completely relax with friends and family but it’s one of many sacrifices I’m willing to take in order to compete at the Games in little over 6 months time.

One thing we all do as a family is a big dog walk on Boxing Day. It’s great to get out in the fresh air the day after Christmas and walk the Christmas pudding off.  We take a bracing walk over a golf course, through woods and alongside streams. The dogs love it and so do I!

The little time spent at home this year was a lovely. I do love Christmas so I try to make the most of it. Christmas dinner was spent at my fiancé Claire’s house, with her family in Melton Mowbray, before travelling back to Belper to spend time with my family.

New Year was also a low-key event.  Claire and I visited Claire’s sister, Amy.  She’s a chef with her own catering business so we were treated to an 8-course meal!  The food was amazing, and it was really nice relaxing in good company whilst taking in the New Year. 

Since then training has been going well. Things are pretty tough at the minute but there’s only a few more weeks left of hard training before we start resting up for the trials.

We arrived into Tenerife on Wednesday (18^th January) for our last training camp before the trials. This camp provides the last intense training block and again gives the benefit of leaving the British winter and transferring to healthier climes.  On returning to the UK, our workload and its intensity will decrease.  This trip really is the final stretch on what has been a 7-year journey to qualify for the London Olympic Games.

Thanks for your support and I hope everyone has a great 2012.

Home for Christmas

After the whirlwind of last month – taking a surprise trip to Paris and getting engaged – December has been a little calmer.

My last blog came from Florida, sitting in 25 degree heat, next to a pool and surrounded by palm trees.  Having returned to the UK last week, this month’s blog comes from a slightly less glamorous surrounding.  I’m sitting at my kitchen table, heating on full blast, enduring the strong smell of wet dogs!  It’s freezing here and the two hounds are lying by my side after a walk in the wind and rain.

Although it feels like being on another planet now, Florida was a great trip.  I managed to get in a lot of good work and feel that I’ve returned in great shape. The idea of the training camp was to complete a solid training block of work, stay fit and healthy, and come back in better shape than when I left.  On all three counts it feels like mission accomplished. 

We managed the occasional afternoon of downtime out in Florida. One afternoon we took the same fishing trip as the last time we were out there.  The motel owners have a 20 foot-long boat and invited us out for an afternoon’s fishing.  Always welcome!

Swimming is a tough sport; we literally spend hours and hours submerged in water with only a black line for company.  But it’s also given me travel opportunities I could only dream about otherwise.  One example would be fishing in the Atlantic Ocean off Florida under glorious sunshine, when most people are sat inside working!

It was a great day out and a lovely way to unwind but it was rewarding too.  There’s something really satisfying about taking on the elements and catching your own dinner.   Between us we managed to catch a number of fish including Tuna, Snapper and a fish called a Grouper, which I caught!  It was a weighty, strong fish that took a good 5-minutes to reel in and get aboard.  I’m not sure you can get a much fresher dinner and they tasted unbelievable.

The remainder of the trip was spent largely in the water, as opposed to on it, but I had a great time nonetheless.

Since coming back with only ten days until Christmas I’ve had to be organised in order to get the shopping done.  Normally I’m the one rushing around on Christmas Eve but this year with help from my fiancé I’m all done!

I’ve also managed to catch up with some family on my return.  My family have been brilliant all the way through my career and it’s really nice when we all get together. I don’t get to see them enough with all the training and travelling, so it’s important to make the effort when I am here.  My auntie always follows my blogs and texts me to say she’s read it, wherever I am in the world.  Its lovely to have the support and it means the world to me.

Me and Auntie Jane.

Also this month I competed at the Northampton Swim Meet: a low-key event but one with great importance in the lead up to the Olympic Trials.  It was useful to apply all the things we’re trying to improve in training.  I was really pleased with my times and with the shape I’m in.  Things are definitely moving in the right direction.

As the year comes to an end I want to thank everybody who has supported me through 2011, whatever their role.  Without all the help, my chances of competing at a third Olympic Games wouldn’t look as bright.

Wishing you all a very Merry Christmas and here’s to a Happy 2012!

Training in Florida, the Derby sports awards and a Paris match..

This last month can only be described as a huge whirlwind of changes and I am absolutely loving it!

First of all, I am writing this blog sitting next to a pool under glorious Florida sunshine, wearing a pair of shades and a good coat of Factor 20.

After coming back from racing in the World Cup Series in Berlin last month my confidence was sky high. I didn’t expect to race that well and managed to carry that form and confidence into this month’s training block.

Training intensity has really increased since the end of last month. We’ve tapered off the short, fast speed swimming and concentrated on the long hard slog that’s going to get me in the best possible shape for the Olympic trials in March.

I’m really happy with where I am at the minute.  This season’s racing has been good and training is going according to plan. Even though the countdown is well and truly on for the trials and time is ticking, there’s still a lot of hard work to be done.

Whatever happens in March I want to know that I’ve left no stone unturned and make sure that all of the i’s are dotted and all the t’s crossed. That way there can be no regrets.

Back to Florida....   Together with the rest of the training group from Loughborough, I’m here on the south-east coast of America for a four week training block. The motel we’re staying at is a stone’s throw away from the beach and although it’s a little windy at times, there’s wall-to-wall sunshine.

Swimming is a tough sport but times like these and racing at major competitions make it all worthwhile. Having said that, this is by no means a holiday.  In fact it’s the complete opposite. We rarely have a day off and when we do it’s all about recovery and no play.

Our base is an hour north of Miami and we’re training at the Pinecrest School. The facilities are world-class and the all-year-round weather makes it a perfect location to get away from the British winter! Getting away to warmer climes helps us avoid all the bugs and illness that start getting spread around during the wintertime at home. Each training session missed is a training session wasted.  By removing ourselves from that bug-ridden environment at home, we can minimise the amount of sessions missed through illness.

It doesn’t mean we don’t ever get small colds, but it’s a percentages game.  When 0.01% is the difference from an Olympic Gold to missing out on a medal, it’s obviously a game worth playing.

Out of the pool this month has been interesting to say the least.  I was lucky enough to be invited along to the Derbyshire sports awards and to co-present an award. It’s always a great evening and inspiring to see all the different sports people achieving great things. I was fortunate enough to present the junior sportswoman of the year award to swimmer Molly Renshaw, a 15-year schoolgirl who broke into the senior team at this year’s World Championships in Shanghai. A well-deserved award and of course it’s always nice to see other swimmers from Derbyshire doing well.

On a more personal note, a couple of weeks ago I took a little trip to Paris with my girlfriend, Claire. I asked her if she fancied a weekend away to London because I was going to Florida for 4 weeks: a kind of peace-offering for leaving her all that time, and for all the Christmas shopping she’ll do on my behalf!

I told her we’d go to London for a weekend and that I would sort everything out, maybe throwing in a few surprises along the way.  We travelled down on the train to London from Loughborough straight after training and everything was completely normal as far as Claire was concerned.  It was only when we arrived into St Pancras Station that I told her we were going to Paris for the night! She certainly wasn’t expecting that and didn’t believe me until she saw the passports, which I’d remembered to pack and hide.

Once aboard the Eurostar train I told her there were no plans for when we arrived in Paris and, to be honest, there weren’t. The only thing I’d booked was a hotel. I hadn’t planned what we were going to do, no restaurant, nothing. But I did have one other surprise up my sleeve!

It was around 5pm after we checked into our hotel, so we decided to get dressed up and go out for dinner. We had a wander around the Sacre Coeur, a beautiful church that looks over the whole of Paris, and when the sun began to set we caught a taxi headed for the Eiffel Tower.

Standing at the Trocadero, which overlooks the Eiffel Tower, we watched the sun fall towards the horizon and bathe Paris in an amazing shade of red.  It encouraged me towards my next surprise.  I got down on one knee and asked Claire to marry me! To my relief she said yes!

The next few hours were a blur as my fiancé and I walked the streets of Paris telling family and friends about our big news. A couple of hours later we found a cute French restaurant and celebrated quietly. The next morning we got up and had breakfast before making our way back to the Eurostar.

It was only a short trip to Paris – less than 24 hours – but I will remember it for the rest of my life. I was relieved Claire had agreed but also glad to share the news which I’d hidden from everyone for weeks. The only person to know was Claire’s father, who I’d visited to ask for permission before we left.   Wedding plans are underway but nothing will happen until after next summer at the earliest.

For now my focus is well and truly on the Olympic trials in March, and hopefully after that, the Olympic Games. Only once these are out of the way will I start to think about the Hog Roast!

Thanks you for your support. I hope you’re enjoying the journey.

Competition times

October saw my first return to competition since the World Championships in July.

The events were nothing like the scale of the World Championships but with 99 per cent of our time dedicated to training, it’s always nice to start racing competitively again.  For the last six weeks training has concentrated on fitness and speed.  Competition offers the chance to apply the skills we’ve been honing to race scenarios.

I've competed at three different competitions in the last month; each a step up from the one before.

The first was at Loughborough in the pool where we train every day.  All the Loughborough squads – Development, University and Elite – entered and competed against each other in the ‘Big 50 Challenge’, a unique competition/training set that Loughborough coaches devised around five years ago.

Each swimmer has to enter in each category of stroke: Butterfly, Backstroke, Breaststroke, Freestyle; plus an underwater race.  The races all cover 50 metres, hence the big ‘50’ challenge.  Added to the five 50 metre races is a 100 metre individual medley (IM), which means 25 metres of each stroke. All of the times are added up at the end of the evening and the swimmer with the least is the winner.  There’s no prize at stake, just an enormous amount of pride!  My target was to finish in the top five and 5th was my overall position.

Being a 200 metre swimmer, the ‘Big 50’ isn’t my forte, but it’s always a great laugh and brings the swimmers closer together in creating a brilliant atmosphere.  Loughborough University enjoys a fantastic team spirit, which I believe is a key reason for its success.

Next up was the Lincoln Open Meet, which was actually staged in Sheffield.  I entered five events, three of which I have either never done before or rarely ever compete in.  I entered 200 metre Fly, 200 metre IM, 100 Fly, 50 metre Free, and 100 metre Free.

Entering the different events was a deliberate strategy intended to familiarise me with racing again and I really enjoyed it.  There was no pressure because I didn’t know what to expect.  Sometimes it’s healthy to stand up and race the person next to you, without putting too much pressure on yourself about goals.  This was what the afternoon was about for me, so that was what I did.

A strong presence of GB swimmers at the meet meant it was a great opportunity for young, up-and-coming swimmers to race their heroes.  Meanwhile, swimmers as young as 10 were able to watch those who have won gold medals at Olympic, World, Commonwealth and European levels, and grab a few autographs.  Everyone likes being recognised for what they have achieved, and swimmers are no different.  It’s a pleasure whenever young or old swimmers ask for your autograph.

My final competition of the month was just last weekend.  Not in sunny Loughborough or the tropics of Sheffield, but this time in the cosmopolitan German city of Berlin.  The FINA World Cup Series travels across the world, stopping in Dubai, Stockholm, Moscow, Berlin, Singapore and Beijing, before finishing in Tokyo.   I only competed in the Berlin leg of the tour because it fit with our training phase and the travel time is manageable.

I was really pleased with my performance, managing to qualify for the 400 metre Freestyle Final, an event that isn’t normally my strongest.  And on top of that I managed a second place finish.  I’m never disappointed if I know I’ve given 100% leading up to an event, and in the race itself.  Also I can’t be disappointed in coming second to a world champion and world record holder!

My main event was the 200 metre Freestyle the next day.  Again I managed to qualify for the final but this time missed out on the medals, finishing fourth.  I was still pleased with the performance, both the time and position, and in the way I swam the race.  Training labours are now showing signs of bearing fruit in race scenarios.

Now back from Berlin I have three weeks more in Loughborough before heading out to Florida for a training camp.  In this time I plan to work on getting as fit as possible so I can go to Florida and put a great 4 to 5 weeks of training in.

Before heading out I’ll also be able to enjoy time at home with family, friends and of course the dogs!  This week was the first birthday of our golden retriever puppy. I wasn’t around for it but I know for sure that both dogs, Alf and Poppy were spoilt rotten – even though it wasn’t Alf’s birthday! (Not that either of them really had any idea what was going on).

On the subject of down-time, next month I’m looking forward to using a Christmas present from my girlfriend Claire.  We’re off for a live comedy double-header: Jason Manford in Derby followed by Alan Carr in London the next day.  It’ll be a treat to chill out with a rare weekend away from the pool.  Hopefully I’ll be able to get to a Derby County game over this next three weeks too, because after then time will be in short supply.

The road to London is getting closer by the day. Each day I wake up thinking it’s another chance of working as hard as possible to realise my dreams of competing at a third Olympic Games.

Thanks as ever for all the good luck wishes and for all the support.  It’s always appreciated.