I can’t believe we are heading to the Olympic Games. It seems a little surreal; it’s something we have been preparing for and talking about for a very long time and the moment is finally here.
Christmas was an enjoyable and restful time in Canada. Santa Claus came and went, as did the flu for everyone in my family (except me). It was a chance for me to recuperate and spend some quality time after a busy few months travelling.
January 5th – Darby and I jumped on a plane and said goodbye to everyone, knowing we wouldn’t see them again for over 2 months. Exciting for my little boy and I that we are on an epic adventure, but we’re sensitive to the fact that life at home will be quiet and strange without us. I have some guilt with the thought that Darby will be without his daddy for such a long time, but am reassured that modern technology can bridge that gap a little.
We arrive in Scotland with enough time to unpack and get settled before training begins. With the return of a new year, the reality of what awaits us in a month’s time is prominent in our minds as we make final arrangements for our training and travel schedule.
Our first competition of 2018 is in Bern, Switzerland. The night before we fly, we hear the news the Anna will not be joining us as she has been struck down with the flu. Part of being a 5th player is being prepared to play at anytime and I am so glad we have tried and tested this all year. It means that we can all remain focused on the objectives we have set for the competition. I loved playing and it was another opportunity for me to work on my own processes related to performance. With some of the games on television, Darby had a chance to watch mummy curl which brought some perspective as to where I go when I tell him I am off on a plane to go curling.
I think it’s fantastic how the coverage of the games via the World Wide Web is so readily available – this is important for our sport. Although I must say, I hate having a microphone on while playing – it’s like an invasion into your mind haha! I don’t care what anyone says, you become more cautious of what you say, how you say it, and refrain from what you might really want to say. I’m not talking about dropping the odd “f bomb” either, but the lingo you only speak to your closest friends and family in order to encourage, support, or vent about something…the little “isms” that you don’t want the rest of the world hearing necessarily. You practice being honest amongst your team mantes, but do you want your honesty and team communication secrets revealed to others? Maybe yes, maybe no?
On a more positive note, there is zero room for complacency in this team – in how we prepare and what we focus on as a unit and I love it. Every time I step on the ice, I am challenged and there is a desire to be better than we were the game before. How many teams can honestly say this is how they operate? As you learn new things, your brain and body takes time to adjust, but as it becomes natural to you and for your team mates, everything seems effortless. This is pretty cathartic and brings such enjoyment for me on the ice.
Returning home from Switzerland, we travelled almost immediately to our final prep tournament in Glasgow, Scotland. With all members back to good health, we finish the weekend with a semi final position. In the following days, we did some media promotions around the games and took a 5 hour bus journey down south to the Adidas Headquarters in Manchester – this is where Team GB are given all of our clothing for the games.
We are greeted by British Olympic Association staff who brief us on the day. First on the agenda is a trip to our very own Team GB clothing shop. We are given our own personal shopper who has an itemized list of clothing, shoes, and accessories that we must have for our trip. They have you stand in the changing room waiting on someone running back and forth with different sizes until you find the one that fits you the best. It’s our first time seeing all of the kit and we parade around the area like we are on the catwalk, seeking reassurance from our team mates that we made the right size choices. We have a suit for formal occasions, and clothing for snow, parade, travel, media, training, ceremonies, and lounging. But wait, there’s more…compression, thermals, underwear, shoes, boots, flip flops, trainers, gloves, hats, scarves, water bottles, bags, suitcases, Panasonic headphones, wash bags, and the list goes on. We were given approximately 150 times to take home. After trying all of our gear on, the sizing requests are sent to the warehouse where they have people packing all of our items, so that by the end of the day, we could take everything home.
We were ushered to another room where all of our competition wear was hanging up. I instantly got goosebumps seeing my name printed on the back of a red jacket with the letters GBR below it. The rest of the day was spent doing media interactions and having fun with sponsors at their activation stations. We came home with Panasonic juicers and as many snacks from Aldi as we could fit in our bags. A memorable day indeed.
I had fun unpacking every single item from its little bag; it was like Christmas and before I knew it, every square inch of my mums living room was covered – everything laid out neatly to show off to the family. We had a weekend off to spend some time with loved ones and to prepare for the big trip.
My parents were taking Darby on a little warm weather break, so ironically, I was waving him off at the airport for a change. I gave him the biggest hug and didn’t want to let go. A few tears streamed down my cheeks and I told him not to have any fun on “his” holidays to which he gasped and giggled and looked at his Nai Nai and Bumpa and said, “we’re gonna have fun, right guys!” “Have fun at the lympics, mummy!” he says and I ask if he will watch for me on television. Unpromted, he says”Yeah – are you gonna win?” “We’re gonna try and win” I respond to the little 3 year old who hates to come second at anything he does. “Yay!” as his arms wrap tightly around my neck. He kisses both of my eyelids before we say our final “love yous” and off he runs with his boarding pass to the security man – my little traveller off on another adventure.
Our last couple of days of training went well and there is calmness around our team. It’s easy to become distracted by the nature of what the Olympic Games stand for, but ultimately, it’s another curling competition and we just need to have our minds on our roles and responsibilities.
Our departure day was January 31st where we flew to Tokyo and on to Karuizawa for some acclimatization and training before moving to the Olympic Village on February 8th. We are excited to join up with the rest of Team GB and stand together for the first time at the opening ceremonies. We are 58 athletes strong, with our youngest being 17, and I just happen to be the oldest athlete at 36!
Our competition begins on Valentine’s Day, and given that I can’t spend it with true love, then I can’t think of a better way to spend it than with my first love.
I had intended outlining exactly my role as a 5th player, but there is still time for that – hoping to follow up with a couple of blog posts upon my return. Our communications during the games period is restricted, so it will be something fun to write about and post at a later date if I can’t do it out here.
Apparently -23 degrees awaits us, which sounds pretty warm to a girl who live in Saskatchewan.
This is what we have been waiting for…wish us luck.
-Kelly