Thanks to everyone for so many best wishes and support during these games. Its been hard to accept the inevitable, that with so much sickness, a good result was out of reach... but I have still have taken away some super memories of an incredible event and a super week in the village with the kiwi team.

I flew down just 5 days before my race, so there was no time to get too distracted by all the crazy things going on in the the village. I was happy to just 'hang' with the kiwis downstairs in 'brotown', drink good coffee (or actually mostly soy hot chocolates :) The kiwi team had something like 180 athletes and well over 100 support staff, so there were always a different bunch of people around. We had access to the live feeds from every event, but without commentary. So it was cool when the likes of Stephen Ferguson was paddling in the final of the K1 500, I was sitting beside his K2 partner and his famous father Ian Ferguson, who were explaining the race and giving the insider tips. It couldn't get better then that!
The best moment for me though was when Nick Willis placed 3rd in the 1500m... the room was totally packed and no one could really believe it. Everyone was screaming and cheering and feeling oh so proud to be wearing black and white.



When I entered the athletes village the team gave me this awesome Haka to welcome me into the team.









I only practiced twice on the course, due to the 40min bus trip and other hassles. They had added some new steep climbs and descents to the course, which at first were quite intimidating, but after a few laps didn't feel too hard.. technically speaking at least. Physically though, it became very extreme and one sided towards a punchy climber type rider. The venue was the same for BMX and Track as well, so after my first training day we went over and watched Hendi & Hayden ride the Madison. Sadly that was the only event I got to see during these games. It was an intense race to watch, sitting there wondering how they can negotiate all that chaos and not collide with each other ending up in a big pile of carbon, metal and wood splinters.



Cannondale not only took off a huge hunk of weight from our Olympic bikes, they also gave us each a special design to match out country.. thanks guys!









As for the race itself, all went to plan and although it could have been nice to have something to blame, I was actually very satisfied with my focus and way I rode. Starting 3rd row did not help, but normally I should have made up ground a bit quicker. But I knew that under these conditions, if I rode over my limit even for just a few minutes, there would be no recovery. After the start and an unlucky first few corners I was back in around 35th place, which is roughly where I stayed throughout the the first lap. I then slowly picked away at riders throughout the race. The last few laps were a little tough because I only passed one rider per lap and was otherwise alone. Well, alone with thousands of spectators who helped remind me that I could not let go. It was super hot as expected and I poured a full bottle of ice water over myself twice per lap. By the last lap, despite holding back so much, I was still almost completely blown. My arms were like jelly and the legs like lead up the final steep pinches, so I guess I did all I could.

The few days after were surprisingly hard. I was just.. down. It finally sunk in that I had not succeeded... for my third time. The NZ team had the answer though on the final night. While most other countries had sent there athletes home, NZ still had a huge group. So they put on a party in the center courtyard. After some congratulations for the various success's, the music got going and we had a bit of a bbq and a whole lot of beers. It felt so nice to let go of my worries, drink some beers and just enjoy celebrating the amazing success's of the team as a whole.

From here its all go. Canberra this weekend... then straight back to Europe for the World Cup final in three weeks. Right now I'm really struggling to keep the head focused. Its good to be hear though, if for no other reason then just to see the course of the world champs next year. I'm sure once the start gun is fired I'll remember what I got to do!




Back in NZ, My mum organized a friends party to cheer me on!  ¶ 3:24 PM