A blog was run by the
BBC during the Olympics to give the reader an idea of what goes on behind the
scenes of an athlete. The blogger was
Annabel Veron a rower who was part of the Women’s 8.
Photo Zimbo
She is an accomplished
athlete and in the Olympic final her boat and crew came 5th. The
blog starts months before the Olympics and documents the trials and
tribulations which she went through.
Some of her experiences I could relate to, these include
·
The “bitter,
wrenching, shocking disbelief of failure” of not achieving what everyone expected me to do.
·
A part of
being a strong squad of “ambitious, passionate women (me: team) who
are great fun to be around”.
Admittedly my
experiences are at a lower level but they are no less poignant. The below quote
appeared in her final blog post; the one where she is putting up her oars for
the final time.
“Whatever
I do next, however rewarding it may be, will never allow me again to say that I spend every
day working towards my dreams.”
It has such an effect
on me that I keep re-reading it.
Maybe it was because
at one stage I was working towards my dream. I was 15 and pushing Essex squad. For whatever reason it didn’t happen and I
admit I have been reminiscing about my experiences ever since (sorry team).
That is the cusp of my
first point “will never allow me
again to say that I spend every day working towards my dreams”
What has actually
stopped me from working towards my dream? The list is effectively endless as it
is human nature to produce reasons. What I can say now is that none seem
reasonable enough and I hope that “whatever I do next, however rewarding it may
be,” it will be towards my dream. Times are a changing you could call it the
Olympic effect.
This brings me to the
final point of this post; can “I spend every day working towards my dreams?”
Well reality of work,
life and other commitments means it can’t be every hour of every day. But I can
do more, there is always more.
But thanks to the
Olympics and support support of my girlfriend, family, teammates and friends. I
am shooting more and enrolled on an lvl 2 coaching course.
There is also still
time as one of the UK
squad is aged 50+ and the longevity of archers at the top flight is quite
good. Allison Williamson for example was
competing in her 5 Olympics in 2012 and is unlikely to retire any time soon.
So to end this start,
thanks Annabel for writing your blog and sharing your feelings. I aim emulate your blog and use this as a
platform to talk about my feelings and viewpoints.
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