4 Jan 2010

The Hype

Long gone are the treacherous trips over the pond. Actually, I don’t recall many of them being too treacherous. I remember being fortunate to have three or four seats to myself on many occasions. This made travel quite a breeze as I could throw back the arm rests and stretch out arrive on the other side, not only alive, but well rested. However, these days flights are being oversold and often leaving passengers stranded and disgruntled. My last trip overseas had me in the middle of five people with very minimal room. Fortunately, on the way home, I was travelling with Vancouver 2010 Sponsor, Air Canada.

During my previous athletic stint, leading into the Torino 2006 Olympics, AC was also the Olympic Team sponsor, but I did not see any direct benefit whatsoever. This time around they have stepped it up  since it’s the “Home Olympics” and therefore there is significantly more hype. Now I’m permitted more baggage and given a handful of Business Class upgrade certificates. Somehow I feel like I went from a Bum in Torino to a Rockstar in Vancouver. Also, AC even features a Nordic Combined podcast on the inflight entertainment. Its exciting to see young Canadian talent describe our sport to strangers on the small screens.

I just departed from my Christmas break in Thunder Bay and had even further insight into this hype. During my visit to Thunder Bay I was easily able to prioritize my training during an easy recovery week and spend quality time with immediate family and friends. I did notice that many of the people that called the house to speak with my mother during the holidays somehow managed to inquire about my mother’s upcoming trip to the Vancouver Olympics within the first 30 seconds of talk. I’m quite sure that many of these people don’t know that I’ve already competed at the Olympics. This really will be a different stage this time around. With just under 50 days until my first event expectations are being set, the excitement is building, and the hype is amplifying.

I’m asked multiple times every day if I’ve qualified for Vancouver? Well, I’m qualified to participate. . . but, I haven’t been officially named to the team and that won’t happen until February 3rd. Until that happens nothing is for certain. Furthermore, what I learned in Torino is that I participate in a high risk sport and sport is unpredictable. This is what makes sport so amazing, and even more so the Olympics. Essentially, it’s important that I remain focused on the task at hand and block out the noise.

Before Torino I was quite extensively battered and beaten. I had major knee surgery 10 months before the Olympics, almost broke both of my legs in a scary incident one week prior to the Olympics, and experienced the gnarliest cross country skiing crash of my career only days before my first event. The Torino Olympics seemed like a battle for survival more than a pursuit of excellence. I believe this can be said not only for myself but the organization of the Olympics itself to some degree.

The athletes’ village in Sestriere seemed unfinished. The shuttle transportation system (athlete shuttle buses) was unsatisfactory, as many times they were significantly late, broken down, or simply lost. One would expect great Italian food and I actually went into the Torino Olympics concerned about eating myself out of the Olympics. After only a few days the food was very repetitive and boring. The challenge was not eating too much, but rather finding sufficient good stuff.

Vancouver 2010, will blow Torino out of the water. We will welcome millions of people from around the world into our backyard. When the sixty or so Olympic Nordic Combined athletes from around the world show up I hope to give them a harsher welcome than they have ever seen from a Canadian Nordic Combined athlete. But, for now, its one day at a time, one jump at a time, one step at a time. Happy Holidays.

Published by Jason Myslicki

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