Resting and preparing for the game

Since finding out the assignments for the last few games it has been an emotional couple of days for all of us.

Resting and hydrating

One of my main focuses for the last couple of days has been to get the balance right between enjoying being at the Olympics at the same time as giving myself time to focus on the job I have to do. 

Focusing on the job means being mentally, physically and emotional ready for the game.  Giving my body the right fuel to be able to physically perform is important.  Equally important is giving my mind the space to focus and be ready for the intensity of the game.

I have spent a lot of time planning my meals and fluid intake to ensure physically I am in the right place for the game.  Tomorrow is game day and I have mapped out my sleeping and eating schedule and will be focusing on nothing else before the game.  I have also balanced my time alone and with people to ensure I have the space to get my mind in the right place for the game.

Whilst tomorrow I will be focusing on only the game, for the last few days I have balanced the need to be focused and ready with the need to relax and enjoy the experience of being at the Olympics.

Running into the Czech team

With the Czech team as they warmed up for their game

I went across to the Bolshoy arena to watch one of the men’s games and to familiarise myself with the arena.  All of the women’s games have been played in the Shayba arena so far, with only the bronze and gold medal games being played in the Bolshoy.  All rinks obviously are pretty much the same; however it is useful to get a feel for where everything is located.  For example where the clock is and what it shows in addition to where the teams enter and depart the ice in relation to their benches.  Getting a feel for any nuances before the game is an important part of the preparation.

Following the game I met up with the BBC commentators and the crew covering the ice hockey to do a short interview with them.  As we walked out of the Bolshoy arena the Czech men’s team were warming up for their game.  I took the opportunity to have a photograph with them.  I believe my colleagues at work had set me the challenge of getting a photograph with Michael Frolik from the Czech team. More educated hockey fans will have to tell me if I have managed to do this or not ... however there were a fair number of NHL players there which made it exciting enough for me to ask for the photo anyway!

The Sochi 2014 outfits

With Therese and Denise in our 2014 outfits

Finally the long awaited outfits for this year!  As I explained in an earlier blog, whenever Denise, Therese and I have a tournament together we all buy a matching outfit to wear for fun on one of the tournament off days.  Today was a tournament off day and so we wore our Olympic themed Russian outfits.  During the Olympics it is fair to say that Russia has not been afraid to experiment with fashion.  This allowed us to buy some rather special Sochi 2014 branded jackets with matching branded “bum bags”!  The rather funky black and white striped hats were sourced by my friend Manda back home!  Be warned anyone back home who has asked for clothing from the Olympics ... this is the style for Sochi 2014 official merchandise.  I look forward to wearing my new outfit back in London, as I am sure Denise will be doing in Canada and Therese will be doing in Sweden!  It is fair to say you cannot buy this anywhere else in the world!

Photo challenges

With Laura and the Hare

As blog readers will be aware, my work colleagues set me a few photo challenges earlier in the week.  One of the challenges was to have my photograph with each of the mascots for the Olympics.  Having met the Leopard and the Polar Bear at the ice rink I only had 1 more mascot to find to complete this challenge.  I finally caught up with the Hare today and had my photograph taken with her.  Unfortunately she was being mobbed by enthusiastic Russians at the time and so the photograph shows me and Laura almost being ambushed as we stood next to her for a photo.  I do however believe this completes the mascot photo challenge which I am very proud about!

With Russian Santa

I also managed to run into Russian Santa Claus, which was not a photo challenge set by my work colleagues but I believe it should have been and so include the photo here as evidence!

Alpine Skiing Men’s Giant Slalom

With Therese at Alpine Skiing

As today was a tournament off day, with no women’s games scheduled, a few of us took the opportunity to go up the mountain to experience one of the events in the mountain cluster rather than the coastal cluster.  The winter Olympics always tends to be more dispersed due to the different types of events and environment needs of the sports.  In Vancouver the arena types of events were in the city while the skiing types of events were in Whistler.  In Sochi the Olympic park contains all of the arena events and the mountain cluster contains the skiing types of events.  It is always nice to experience the Olympic feel in different locations and because our hotel is on the park it can feel a bit like being in a bubble here.

With Cat and Scott

We managed to get tickets for the Alpine Skiing men’s giant slalom and so took the train and then the bus up to the mountain.  The first thing that struck me when we got there was the different feel to the event and the Olympics up there as opposed to on the Olympic park.  Everything is more spread out up there and so each event feels quite separate in comparison to the close proximity of all of the events being held at the park.  It therefore is more difficult to experience the Olympic atmosphere as much and also means as a spectator you have to be committed to the one sport you are watching because you are not in a position where you can just walk quickly to a different venue or a different sport.  To get to each different event there are different buses that you need to take and so you have to be more planned than if you were at the Olympic park.

We thoroughly enjoyed the chance to be outside of the park and to see a bit more of what the winter Olympics is about for other athletes.  You can’t fail to have respect for the skiers as you watch them carve their way down the mountain in record times.  We were also incredibly lucky with the weather as it brightened up for us today, so much so that we needed to apply some sunscreen to our faces to avoid getting burnt!  I sat in the sun watching the skiing and reflected on how lucky I am to be here and able to experience all of this.

Visiting Club France

At Club France for lunch

After a few hours we left and our French linesman invited us to join her for lunch at ‘Club France’ – the French House.  At the Olympics each country has a house which they use as a base for their athletes at the same time as it generally being a central meeting place for many of the fans from that country.  A few of the countries have houses inside the Olympic park and entry to them is reserved for athletes and athlete’s family and friends.  The French house is however up in the mountains and so we took up the invite from the French ice hockey federation to have lunch there.  The food was fantastic and it was a nice opportunity to relax and enjoy a little bit more of the Olympic culture.  Again I sat there with friends and reflected on how lucky I am to get the opportunity to see all of this and to be a part of the Olympics in this way.

Getting focused

The last few days have been perfectly balanced with rest and relaxation time.  Tomorrow will be focused entirely on the game for me.  I hope to be able to update you all following the game and write a final blog before I head home ... but please forgive me if this doesn’t happen for a few days.

I have really enjoyed the chance to capture my feelings and thoughts while I have been here and wanted to thank you all for the support.