Olympic Camp #2 (part 2)

The second half of our Olympic Camp in Canberra, had us hosting the Japanese National Team for some training games. While the Japanese are not highly ranked in the water polo world, they displayed some refreshing attributes. The Japanese goal is ultimately to prepare for the 2020 Olympic Games in Tokyo. We went in knowing that they weren’t going to be the strongest competitors that we were going to come up against, but they were going to be fast.

The combination of altitude and only playing with 9 players, meant there was going to be plenty of game time and we were definitely going to be feeling the effects. What I didn’t expect was the Japanese girls attitude. They not only trained their hearts out, but showed up to every game ready to play (even though most games had about 10-15 goal difference) and came out firing every quarter of every game.

Photo thanks to AIS Facebook Page

With the camp reaching it’s final days there was anticipation in the air. Selection was up for grabs on the upcoming tour to Montenegro, Brazil and USA. Which meant the very important step of checking out some of the sites in Rio, as well as some of the venues. Getting the lay of the land is helpful in our preparation for the Games as you can start some visualisation training, plus if we can fit in some site seeing while we are there, means no distraction while competing at the Games… especially with family and friends all having a great holiday while you’re stuck in the most intense and pressure filled experience of your sporting career (seems fair).

Photo thanks to AIS Facebook Page

While it is not the be all and end all if you miss out on this tour, it is however, an indication of where you are currently positioned in the team. We will take 15 away out of the 19 players currently involved.  As the days continue to count down, the stress and pressure for selection continue to build as we head into the holiday season. As they say, no rest for the wicked…. 

 To see who made the cut, check out Water Polo Australia

Olympic Camp #2: AIS Altitude House

Altitude House Colouring Time

There is less then 300 days until the Rio Olympics get under way and the Aussie Stingers and I are hitting new heights (literally).  After a quick week at home we travelled to the Australian Institute of Sport in Canberra for our second Olympic Camp. Here we have 12 out of 19 girls staying in the Altitude House, which is set to simulate living at 2,500m above sea level. Who would have thought that at 29 years of age I would be sleeping in a bunk bed in a windowless room for a minimum of 14 hours a day… What kind of hell is this? The low oxygen environment makes climbing the single flight of stairs to the apartment feel like a 2-hour fitness session. To say that these 3 weeks are going to be tough is a massive understatement.

Recovery Time with Massage Chairs and Moon Boots

We have 19 girls vying for only 13 positions and things are getting interesting. The first week of camp had us run though our paces with swim and strength testing. This definitely made for a hard first week. Camps based in Canberra have some great advantages, such as we have the ability to train at the times we want (no 5am starts!), we have access to the recovery centre (ice baths, massage chairs and moon boots galore), plus all our support staff are on site, doctors, nutritionists, physiotherapists, massage therapists, physiologists and psychologists are all easily accessed to help ensure that both our bodies and minds remain in tiptop shape and are prepared to embark into one of the hardest and most challenging training period of our Olympic preparation.

The second half of this camp we will be hosting the Japanese team for some training games. While it’s all well and good to train against each other it is nothing compared to training against another team. Having opposition to train against allows us to work on any and all combinations within the team. This will give all athletes the opportunity to make some important steps into cementing their position in the team. Consistency will be a key attribute needed over the next 10 months as the girls will be fighting for a place in the team every day and at every session.

Escaping the AIS for a Sunday Team Lunch

Till next time!

Olympic Camp 1: Sydney

It is easy for people to miss all the elements that go into building an elite athlete and an elite team. Four years are spent focused solely on a single goal that when all is said and done comes down to two weeks of the biggest emotional and physical roller-coaster ride you can ever experience. It’s less than a year out from the Rio Olympic Games and we are getting down to the business end of things.

 

Our first Aussie Stingers Olympic Camp was held over two weeks in Sydney. We were based out at Sydney Olympic Park in Homebush. It was here that I saw my first ever senior women’s water polo game when the girls won the Gold at the 2000 Games and one of the reasons why I got into water polo in the first place. It was great to get a reminder of what and why I have spent all these hours, days and years working towards. It can be easy to forgot where it all started and get bogged down it all the hardships and obstacles that can get in your way.

After a disappointing forth finish at the recent World Championships we have a lot of work ahead of us both in and out of the water. While we first week started off relatively moderate in the water, due to everyone coming back off a break. The second week kicked up gears in the pool and out, with plenty of meetings to discuss our plan and the processes we hope to implement to enable us to play at our absolute best individually and as a team.

We have a great bunch of girls involved in this preparation process, which will be important in the coming months. Living in each other’s pockets for the next 10 months will be one of the tests the team will have to face. The honesty and respect that we have for one another will endeavour to help us wade through the minefield that is team sports.

With the first camp done and dusted we are home for a week and then it’s right back into the thick of it with a three week camp at the Australian Institute of Sport in Canberra. 

#307Days

Heart Break and the Road Ahead

The second week of the World Championships was a mix bag. We were lucky to scrape through the quarter finals against China. China are a team we have played numerous of times over the years and have also met them in the Beijing and London Olympic Quarter Finals. On all occasions we have come away with the win, seeing both London and the World Champs quarters end in penalty shootouts.

Penalty shootouts are very emotionally charged. Unfortunately it comes down to individual brilliance or an individual’s mistake. It’s just you and the opposition out in the middle of the pool. It can either be eerily quite or deafeningly loud. When a team games gets whittled down to a loss or win on a single individual it can seem outrageously unfair. A player may have had the best game of there life and an inch too wide, too narrow, too high or too low can see that player lose the game for the team.  

After surviving the quarter we were set to meet the USA in the semi. While a tough game, poor attacking options left us lacking in the second half. After facing a disappointing result, our job was not over. The bronze medal match vs Italy was still looming. Our final match started off quite well, although we missed some early opportunities. After trading goals with the Italians for the entire game, the final hooter sounded and the scores we even. Another penalty shootout… This time we were not so lucky and unfortunately did not come up with the win. This saw us come away from the Championships with forth, far from what we were hoping for ourselves.

So it’s back to the drawing board to both review and develop our team so we can head into the 2016 Rio Olympics in the best possible form we can be, ready to fight for the elusive gold medal.

The Good, The Bad and The Brave

It's been a tough week here in Kazan, Russia. The 16th Fina World Championships have got under way and the Aussie Stingers are primed and ready to go. 

The first week saw us off to a less than perfect start with a close win against Greece (8-7).  This was the first game our team finally played together, due to a rocky preparation plagued by injuries and sickness. After a good first quarter, we made some critical errors that kept the game close. In the end we were able to hold on and get away with the win.

Our second game vs South Africa (19-1) was a much better game by fair. Although the opposition is admittedly not as strong. Our combinations and communication seemed like it was finally on the same page and working in time.

Our third and final round game was our most important as it was the decider between who would be placed first and who would be second in our pool. Which heading into the second week and knockout rounds of the World Championships can be very important. Plus the added bonus of a direct route to the quarter finals if you're placed first.

On a more personal note this game was set to be my 300th international game for the Aussie Stingers. Phew! Time seems to have flown, I still remember my very first international game.... 10 years ago I played my first game during a test series vs New Zealand in Canberra to decide the last 3 positions to complete the senior team set to compete at World League and ultimately the World Championships in Montreal in 2005. And as they say the rest is history.

Our Netherlands game (8-6) was always going to be tough. We were able to keep the usually high scoring Dutch team to 6 goals, all of which were from extra man. A great effort from the girls.

With our round games done and dusted we get a guaranteed quarter final birth and have 3 days before our next game. As we prepare for our next game we have a  few hard training sessions and start to knuckle down on our game plan.

The second week of world champs can bring about anything. Teams can crumble and teams can rise. Luck will favour the brave. 

Full Game Reports on both Aussie Stingers and Sharks Plus much much more can be found at Water Polo Australia


 

Guts, Determination and That Lactic Burn.

Silver Medallist, World League Super Finals

One of my favourite aspects of competitive sport is that it has the ability to test and reveal a person character. And it doesn’t only test you once, it pushes and prods and continuously throws down testing your limits. On our recent trip to China I would have to say that it was one of the most gruelling tests I have been through over the last few years. Not to say that we have been taking things easy, but this particular tour really sort to push us to our breaking points.

We were in China for three weeks, the first being a heavy training load week, the second a preparation tournament (Kunshan Cup) and finishing off the tour with the Fina World League Super Finals. Each game bought about new challenges, being that this was the first time most of the squad was together and the first step towards making the World Championship team to compete in Kazan in July 24^th to August 9^th, not to mention that Olympic Squad selection is just around the corner in September.  

For each game we went in with the mindset that it needed to be better than the game before. Each time we hit the water we wanted to be making improvements. Now these improvements didn’t need to be something out of this world. We just wanted to make the best of every opportunity we had been given to make the important steps towards bringing our best to the World Championships.

The Fina World League Super Finals saw us playing under strength and under manned. With a few girls coming down with sickness and others carrying injuries we went into the semi final and grand final 2 players down. Playing a game with 9 field players, while not ideal is still possible. Both the semi and final were very heavy games and required all players to dig deep and give absolutely everything in the tank. While the first quarter of the gold medal match admittedly was a long way from our best. The pure guts, determination and down right never give up attitude saw players pull out all stops, seeing us score 6 goals to 2 over the final three quarters.

Swimming through the burn of lactic acid as it fills your arms and shoulders, unable to get a full breath of air, legs like cement and your mind starts to divert to how bad you are feeling instead of concentrating on the game plan. To be able to overcome these and refocus your mind of what you have to do and push through everything to get yourself up and down the pool with someone either on top of you, holding you back or chasing that person down is not an easy task.

I was both proud and humbled with the effort that all the players put in to those two final games. Leaving China after 3 tough weeks with one Bronze Medal (Kunshan Cup) and one Silver Medal (Fina World League Super Finals) is not something to sneeze at. While we have quite a lot of work to do before the World Championships, I'm excited to see what the girls and myself will be able to achieve when we take on the rest of the World at the Fina World Championships in Kazan.

When One Door Closes

Supporting International Guide Dog Day

After a long hibernation it's time to start getting the wheels of the cyber sphere to start turning again. So what's been happening?

Quick recap: Over the past two years, I have graduated with a Bachelor of Biomedical Science, as well as completing my Postgraduate Diploma in Public Health, majoring in Emergency and Disaster. I finished up work at the Australian Red Cross Blood Service. I went on a 13 week European and UK adventure (such fun!). Signed up to play professionally for a club in Athens, Greece. I had surgery on my elbow to remove a bone fragment. I relocated to Sydney for the time being. I started and almost finished a new work contract with NSW Health at Prince of Wales Hospital in Blood Bank. And finally at the end of this month I will be taking up a nomadic lifestyle and be moving from place to place over the next 15 months or so for training and competitions in preparation for 2016 Rio Olympics.

As the 2015 National league season winds down, preparations for 2015 Fina World Championships start to really ramp up. The next couple of weeks will be filled with trying to get my life all organised before heading overseas for our World Champ campaign. First off, removalist and storage... in hopes of keeping costs down over the next 15 months, I will be foregoing rent and become reliant on the kindness of friends and family to put me up the times I am actually in town, which let's face will be very limited. But this means that once my lease is up at the end of the month I will be packing most of my possessions into storage till post Olympics.

Thanks to Chatswood Toyota For hosting us!

There are no words to describe how much I dislike moving. Packing, labelling, cleaning, it's a never ending cycle, especially when the items in question are heading into long term storage. One does not want their worldly possession to be covered in mildew and mold. So soon it will be another round of packing everything up and shipping it out for safe keeping.

But it's not all bubble wrap and newspaper on the horizon, this Friday will see out first outfitting of potential Rio Olympians getting sized up for uniform. Which always has a little element of excitement surrounding it. It can be a lengthy process of putting on clothes, taking them off and putting more clothes on, and for those who aren't a fan of long shopping trips this may be a new kind of hell. There is also, however, a little burst of excitement and nerves that remind you that the Games are just around the corner and you're running out of time to prepare for what is to come. Numerous rounds of selection tournaments and camps, some of the most intense training session that will not only test you physically, but also mentally are all just around the corner. The count down has well and truly begun.

Rainbow chasing

Bring on 2014!

As the new year truly gets under away, it's time to review the past year and work out what my next step. With 2013 being a fairly successful year, silver medalists at the World Championships, graduating with a Bachelor of Biomedical Science and a 11 week Euro/UK holiday to boot. Not too shabby at all. But as January starts nearing its end it's time to start getting back into the swing of things and setting my goals for this 2014.

Already training has stepped up leaving me with some aching muscles and at times struggling through the sessions. But there is nothing like that feeling of finishing off all the reps in a gym set or pushing yourself through that last lap of the pool. Sometimes you want to just jump out of the pool and celebrate 'Rocky' style... "let's  build some hurting bombs"

 

So with training under away, our first international game (vs China) is just round the corner. The BHP Billiton aquatic super series in Perth from the 31st of Jan - 2nd of Feb at Challenge stadium. All the information can be found on the website by clicking here.

After this national camp I fly out to Greece for the second round of the Euro League with Olympiacos and then its straight back to Sydney for the first round of National League with the KFC QLD Breakers. Fingers crossed I won't have time to even feel the jet lag as it's such a quick trip. It's going to be a very busy start to February.

First Round of Euro League

Headed off to Athens to meet up with the Olympiacos team (Greece) to have a week of hard training before flying out to Hungary. Here in Hungary we spent some time going over tactics and having training games. Then it was off to Eger for the first round of Euro League.

Our first game was very important, as in order to qualify for the quarterfinals you have to win a minimum of 2 games out of the 3 games. First up was SKIF Izmailovo (Russia) the game started out reasonably close. We were able to pull away a little in the third and fourth quarter, but our mistakes kept them in the game. In the end we were able to hold them out with a 3 goal win.

Our next game was always going to be a tough one, as NGM Firenze (Italy) had also won their first game. Therefore who ever won this game was going to qualify for the next round. Our game went goal for goal for three quarters. We were able to pull away in the forth quarter to a 7-4 lead with 5 minutes to go. However, some silly mistakes and poor defence allow them to score 4 goals and take the game. This game was very disappointing as we made a lot of errors and meant that we had to win against the home team in front of their crowd.

Our third and final game vs Egri Vizilabda (Hungary) was very stressful as both teams were in the same position (1 loss, 1 win) and had to win in order to proceed to the next round. We started well with defending a number of extra men in the first few minutes and had some very strong attack. However it wasn’t until the final quarter where we pulled away and sealed the win and our ticket to the quarterfinals.

Final standings:

1.     NGM Firenze 6 pts

2.     Olympiacos SFP 6pts

3.     Egri Vizilabda 3pts

4.     SKIF Izmailovo 3pts

All Qualification Round results

What's Next?

After a silver medal at the World Championships and a much needed 10 week European and UK holiday. Upon arriving home I had a brief stint to get over the jet lag before heading back into training. There is nothing like those first few days of training where everything is a struggle and you start to wonder why you ever stopped training in the first place.

But lucky for me it only took the first week before the feel of the water started to come back and only 3 weeks before I was starting to feel like myself again. Having graduated in June and quitting my job before World Championship tour it was time for me to start making some decisions about my future.

Did I want to keep playing internationally? What sort of work did I want to get in to? Essentially I was at a crossroad and it was time for me to make some choices. I decided that after a great year playing for the Aussie Stingers I wasn’t ready to retire just yet. And since I was thinking about some postgraduate study, it made sense to keep playing while (a) I continued to enjoy it and (b) while my schedule was looking to stay very similar to what it had been; i.e. work, study, polo.

View in Athens

So with that decision made I took up an offer to play professionally overseas in the LEN trophy for a Greek club team, which was looking to be approximately a 2 month contract. I was excited to be returning back to Greece where I had played previously (after the Beijing Olympics). Arriving in Greece on Tuesday where I will be training in Athens for a week before flying to Hungary for the first round. After a week in Hungary I fly out to meet up with the Aussie Stingers in Ottawa for Canada Cup then off Holiday Cup in California. 

One of the Training Pool in Athens

It's great to be back!

Barcelona Baby

The Aussie Stingers have finally made their way to Barcelona. After a quick week of games and training in Bilbao, northern Spain, we were finally given a rest day after going nonstop for 15 days. Dining this time we visited the Guggenheim Museum, had some fantastic tapas in the 'old town', plus of course some shopping.

However this short respite did not last long, as soon enough we were back in the pool completing some last minute fitness work before heading into World Champs. Finally we were on our way to Barcelona. Or draw saw us up against New Zealand, China and South Africa in the preliminary rounds. Having played both New Zealand and China in our rounds at World League we had a fair idea of what we were up against. However that did not stop the nerves from creeping in every now and then.

The forth day of World Champs is coming to a close and we are two games in. Our first game vs New Zealand, saw us look a little rusty at first but we were able to keep our heads and come away with a solid win, 15-4. With our first game done and dusted we started our preparation on our net opponent, China. We new this one was going to be a tough one, as it would essentially decide who would top our group and there for have a better cross over to get into the top 8. 

After a rough start we were down at the first break. However we picked ourselves up and were able to pull away in the second half, with a 10-0 score line. The final score was 14-5. A great effort from all the girls, so proud of everyone. This  victory will only be short lived, as we are straight back into preparation for our next game, South Africa.

A huge thanks to all of our supporters over here in Barcelona, back in Oz and around the world. 

For game reports and info please visit the Water Polo Australia Website

 http://www.australianwaterpolo.com.au/ 

Or follow them on twitter (@WaterpoloAus) or Facebook (Water Polo Australia) 

First leg: Hungary

Our journey to the World Championships in Barcelona began on the first of July, as all interstate players made their way to Sydney for a short but intense camp. After some hard training we departed Australia for Hungary on the fourth and after numerous flights and many hours we arrived at our destination without any bags in the early hours of the morning. We awoke the next morning to sunshine and clear skies and off we went to the pool. Luckily for us the pool was a short walk from our rooms. We made do with what gear we had, although there were some burnt shoulders from lack of sunscreen and us still carrying our winter coats.

Our luggage finally arrived that afternoon and we could start settling in to our training routine. Hard sessions and some tough work was ahead in this first leg of our tour. Good food and the great location made all the hard work easier and the numerous hours of training became a thing of the past and we started to really cement some of the ground work in our preparation for the big games to come. Although the test game was a disappointing loss, there were some positives to be drawn from it. Things may not have come together yet, however the steps we are taking will see us gaining more and more momentum each day.


It's been highly entertaining getting to know some of the new girls a little better. There have been some interesting quirks popping up here or there and some entertaining conversations. With the sun at our backs we left Hungary behind and ventured off to Spain. Situated on the northern side of Spain, Bilbao is where we will set up camp for the next week with some test matches against Spanish and Italians. Our mens contingent (the Aussie Sharks) have also arrived here for some matches. It will be great to both play and watch some good games before we finally journey south to Barcelona for the main event.

Buenas noches 

Barcelona 2013

So after some very busy months finally our preparation for the Fina World Championships Barcelona, will ramp up, as we head off into camp. I have finally sat my last exams for my Bachelor of Biomedical Science degree (fingers crossed they all went well), and have finished up at my job with the Red Cross Blood Service. So now its time to really buckle down and enjoy putting in the hard yards at training. So bring it on!

This afternoon the team will meet in Sydney to begin a short and intense training camp before flying out to Hungary. It has been a difficult week trying to get ready. Firstly I have had to start planing my holiday for when World Champs finishes up (soo exicited!), secondly I have had the ordeal of trying to work out how to pack for 3 months away, numerous seasons, training and uniform gear (of which we have plenty off, loving the new gear we received from our new sponsors) and casual clothing, all without going over 20kg... a tough ask. 

A disappointing result at the World League Finals in Beijing as a result of inconsistent play saw us drop some important games in penalty shootouts. However, these loses have helped us analyze the areas we need to work on and have helped refocused our training to fix them. Plus plenty of fitness work to maintain the level we want to be at.

This upcoming tour will see us departing from Sydney to Hungary for about a week, then to Bilbao, Spain and then finally landing in Barcelona for the Fina World Championships. We have a great team heading over, combination of some new girls coming into the team and some of the girls from London Olympic returning. Full team list can be viewed on Water Polo Australia Website

Adiós

BHP Aquatic Super Series

Second week of training done, and what a week it has been. Attending a senior training camp with China was not really what I had in mind when I thought about heading back to training after a long break. The grueling sessions and training games left us feeling a little battered at the end of the week as we headed into the final showdown. The official game as a part of the BHP Aquatic Super Series (BASS).

The training week consisted of spending around 4 hours in the pool a day plus an hour in the gym every second day. As well as a mixture of video reviews, ice baths, recovery and physio. It can be very limiting on the amount of down time you can scrape together. How I have missed this!  

 Video: Behind the scenes of the Australia Water Polo teams at the BHP Billiton Aquatic Super Series

With a fairly new squad put together it was fantastic to see some great individual and team play over the week. I was a little nervous to say the least at heading into international competition after only 2 weeks of training. I was unsure if my brain would still work under the pressure, not to mention how my body would hold up. Five months is a long time to be out of the water and out of competition.

The girls really showed their character in coming out strong at the start of the game. With most of the first quarter turning into a swimming match. We soldiered on and kept battering away at the Chinese defense to be rewarded with some goals. Although the margin was always close, we netted a couple of goals in a row in the final quarter, giving us some breathing room. In the end we won 7-6, a fantastic effort from everyone. Click Here for Match Report

The BASS event was fantastic! It was great to be involved in an event that wasn't solely based around water polo. Getting to know more of the Australian Sporting Community and seeing how other sports prepare and compete. Hopefully for those swimming fans who don't know that much about polo or who haven't seen a live world class international game were able to enjoy either the men's or women's game. Now it's back to QAS (Queensland Academy of Sport) and National League training, with our first National League game not too far away.

New Year, New Squad

With the beginning of a New Year, so sees a new Stingers squad emerging. With some of our London Olympic team retiring, others taking a break or returning to various work or study commitments,  making way for the next generation of players to make their mark on the international stage. To start the New Year off the squad heads to Perth to train and play against the Chinese in the BHP Aquatic Super Series (BASS). With our Olympians returning to training on the 7^th of January it’s going to be a tough week of training and playing. The week caps off with an Official Game on Friday 18^th at Challenge Stadium.

So after a fantastic 5-month break it’s great to head straight back into the swing of things. Although the DOMS (delayed onset muscle soreness) is a killer, it seems to be easing off as the week’s progress. It's be great training with Glencora, Ziggy and Victoria during this week, with Holly to arrive tonight.

With the BHP Aquatic Super Series starting 18th and continuing to the 20th, with a number of swimming events, the Aussies Sharks playing Croatia and our game vs China. Should be a good game against our Olympic quarter final opponents, where our game went into extra time and penalty shootout.  

 

Tickets Available Here

Normal Life?

So it's now been over 3 months since the Olympics ended and the time has just flown by. I have been back working at ARCBS (Australia Red Cross Blood Service), I have been on not only 1 but 2 holidays (Spent October in the USA and traveled to Brazil for a week to play some polo in November). It's definitely been a couple of flat out months. I had a fantastic holiday in the States. I realized it was the first time I have been on a holiday in about 12 years where I haven't had to do any training or games. It was an absolute blast. Yes I did venture over all by my lonesome. But I was able to catch up with some great friends along the way. Plus all the people you get to meet.

Then out of the blue I got an offer from Brazil to come and play in there national club titles. Let's face it I needed all of 2 seconds to think about it before I said yes. The hardest part was getting the time off from work having just been away. However, again the ARCBS stepped up and gave me the 10 days off. Lucky for me I have a friend from Brazil who I met while I was attending Hartwick and who I was going to crash with during my time there. So I made the 30plus hour trek over to South America really excited about what I was going to experience there having never really ventured past northern Mexico. 

I had a blast!!! The girls were extremely friendly and welcoming. I was a little apprehensive having not trained since the Bronze medal game in London, but after the first game it was just like old times. Perhaps physically a little slower and weaker.... I enjoyed my Brazilian experience immensely and a hoping to get a invited next year and possibly be able to swing a couple more days into the trip. 

Training Pool in Brazil.... beautiful!

Now it's the 1st of December and I'm back at work and heading into the festive season. Although I have been doing some light activity most days I am really enjoying not being on a strict training schedule and having the flexibility to fit in exercising around my life, rather than the other way around. I have also had time to consider my options and with returning to university for my final semester I have had to consider what is next for me within sport. Is it time to retire? Hang up my cozzies and cap for good?

But alas I don't think I am quite there yet. I have committed myself to another 7-ish months of training with the national team in hopes of making the 2013 World Championship team headed for Barcelona in July. It will be tough with a number of girls returning and the younger generations chasing our tails. But I am excited to continue to play as long as I am still finding the enjoyment in the challenge of the game.

So it's back to National League and National team come January 2013. Definitely going to enjoy this last month of complete freedom before having to buckle down for the hard yards ahead. Fitness testing is just around the corner...

Since London

So since London things have been very very hectic. We had the Welcome Home Parades, where Jane Moran, Jess Fox and Myself attended every city on the tour. And what a tour! Each city put on a spectacular show! A huge THANK YOU to everyone who was involved with the organisation of the events and everyone who came out to welcome us back. I had such a great time meeting new people and making some great new friends.

Now it’s back to reality. Started back at work (Australian Red Cross Blood Service) after 8 months of leave without pay and it’s great to be back. All the staff have been fantastic with helping me get back into the swing of things. It’s like I never left. I have also been visiting some schools and chatting to the students about my experience at the Games. Plus the Bronze medal definitely gets me some bonus points.

 

But work aside; I have been planning my trip overseas to the USA. I am heading back to my college, as I have the tremendous honour of being inducted into the Hartwick College Athletic Hall of Fame. I am very excited to head back for the visit. I am staying over in the States until the end of October, touring from New York down the East Coast towards Miami.

I have also moved in with an old friend, as she recently bought this amazing house that funnily enough her parents owned about 20 years ago. Moving has both its ups and downs. Perfect time for a massive spring-clean, but horrible for my allergies and such a hassle to organising, pack and then unpack. I finally unpacked the last box about 5 days ago and have started to settle in to the new place.

Been a bit slack....

Sorry to all who have been checking for updates.... got a little busy. But hopefully you all could catch a glimpse or two of our games or at least the results. So closest games I have played in, headed into extra time in the Quarters, Semis and Final.... gee talk about a heart stopper. 

 

But as you all may already know, we came away with the Bronze!!! Great result! Although not what we went for. But how can you not be happy with that. Not every comes away with an Olympic Medal. 

A massive THANK YOU to everyone who has supported me over the last year, plus all of you who have followed by journey from the very beginning in 2000. 12 years of blood, swear, tears and hard work. Not sure where I am heading to from here, but am planning to enjoy my time off. To the Australian Red Cross Blood Service for all the time off, it's fantastic to be apart of an amazing company! To Griffith University for all there support and time off of the last few years. To the QAS, AIS and VIS thanks for everything you have provided me in regards to training and staff, fantastic work!

  With the parades next week and no uni until next year I am really looking forward to enjoying the next few months.