Let the Games Begin...
This blog begins on Wednesday 4.30pm the 26th of July.
I am picking Neil up for our first adventure in the European Masters Championships. I am excited 🚀🚀🚀
We are travelling up to Stansted the night before we fly out to Aarhaus Denmark.
I won't bore you with the details but our travel plans run like clockwork and we get to our hotel roughly 24 hours after I first picked up Neil 😊
As we check into our hotel we get talking to a lovely couple from Scotland, Ben and Phylis who have also just arrived for the champs....
We decide to all try and find the Ceres stadium together as we need to pick up our race passes and declare for our races. We end up going slightly out of our way but eventually sign up and check out the Expo. There is even time at the stadium for a coffee and a sarnie. Nom nom nom....
We decide we want to catch a glimpse of the opening ceremony and manage to catch up with the athletes from all the different nations with their flags.
We follow them to Tivoli Gardens and watch the opening Ceremony which is fun and somewhat tongue in cheek. The best bit is the acrobatic chaps who are a mixture of ages and shapes and sizes. They do a variety of routines that make us chuckle. Great fun 😆
We head back to the hotel as it's been a long and busy day and I need my beauty sleep as it's race day tomorrow. My injury doesn't feel too bad and I am reasonably confident that I will get through my race.
The following morning I have a nice healthy breakfast at hotel Zleep and head down to the stadium in plenty of time to watch some athletics. I am not on until gone 4pm so enjoy watching some of the action.
I am looking forward to my race and head over to the indoor warm up centre that also houses doping control.
I warm up as normal. Foam rolling legs. Doing dynamic stretches and running through my drills. I have my head phones on and I am up for this! Just to ge here warming up with the other athletes from all over Europe is giving me goose bumps. I run through my strides.
I am just about to slip out of my spikes and take the short walk back to the stadium to the call up room when I realise my declaration papers, a small ticket I am supposed to hand in to the call room, is missing. My heart is in my mouth as I start to panic, only for my fellow athlete and friend Michele Thomas to hand it to me. One of the athletes had found it and luckily given it to her. Panic over!
I stroll over to the call room and check in. They check my bib numbers are on front and back and even examine my spikes to check they are the right length. Phew I pass all the checks and I am told I am in lane 5 heat 4...
Soon all the ladies in my heats are there, then and exactly to schedule we are taken out track side. Almost feel like a pro! I get my spikes on as I warmed up 30 mins ago so do 2 quick sprints just to fire up the fast twitch. I watch the 3 heats before me which are fast and then it's my turn
I set my blocks up to my exact settings I am buzzing and do 2 practice runs off them
The stadium goes quiet and we are called to the start.
On your marks, set and then out if the corner if my eye the German lady has gone. This triggers everyone else. I don't budge lol as I seem to have reacted quickly to recognising it to be a false start. This all happens in a millisecond. Bang, bang again yes false start called. Yikes thinks I perhaps I should have reacted just in case!
Still we are called to our starters orders once again. On your marks, set, BANG! I drive with my arms and feel I get out well. The race is all a bit of a blur from then on. I am working hard but seem to be falling further behind. I finish in 4th but looking at the clock and where I finished. I am worried I am slow and may not gave qualified for the semis.
I am gutted with my time 14 08 one if my slowest this year but have qualified for the semi final so luckily get another chance to try and put things right tomorrow.... Not sure what went wrong, I went into the race in a positive frame of mind. I wasn't sure about the injury but it did not appear to cause me a problem, it could be my lack of training in the last 2 weeks has cost me my zip, the travel, my lack of sleep.... the list of excuses is endless or I might just have run badly!
Still no time to dwell got to come back again tomorrow and do it all again 😊
I have another lousy night sleep but head on down for another healthy breakfast. I can feel my quads from the day before.
We catch the free bus over to the stadium and within half an hour I am over to the warm up area. Fully kitted out in my waterproof trousers and jacket. It is pretty wet.
As I start to foam roll I can feel yesterdays 100 in my legs but on the plus side my rib area isn't giving me too much gip.
I run through my standard warm up routine and start to loosen up.
I have looked at the times from yesterday and feel there is an outside chance of me making the final. So I will put yesterday's disappointing race behind me and physc myself up for a pb and place in the final. I put my wet weather gear back on and head over to the call room. It's not long before we are taken out on track. There are 2 heats, I am in the 2nd one in lane 8. The rain has eased and there is a slight tailwind...
I keep my wet weather gear on and get into my spikes as quick as I can so I can fire up my legs again with a few short sprints.
The first semi blast off and they all look fast.
My job at this time is to rush to my lane and blocks for the 2nd semi and set them up to my liking.
They are playing Pharell Williams 'get lucky' over the tanoy and I am pumped. The rain comes down we now have a headwind but I am focused.
The gun goes bang I don't feel like i get as good a start as the day before but drive hard and keep trying all the way to the line I think I come 8th out of 8 and again I am not convinced I have run a good time.
Yep sure enough even slower than the day before 14.12 and 12th overall. I am disappointed with the time, I know the conditions were poor but would have liked a pb. Gave it my all though. So head held high.
Keeping a positive frame of mind I put my name towards for the relays. I may not be picked but hopefully there is a chance to redeem myself.
Even though I have not run at my best I haves loved the experience and look forward to my next races...
Now off for some sightseeing with Neil 😎
