Osaka:Our First Day

Osaka: Our fist Day

Our flight was scheduled for 1pm. We made it to the airport in plenty of time, meeting teammates in the line and relaxing in the lounge before take off. Today’s athletes are in constant contact with home and friends.

The photo shows Ben Huot and Brian Hill handling some last minute details.


I remember in Sydney the excitement when we went to the lounge and were connected using the high-speed phone lines, which had been installed at the last minute. It required a call to agents to give us revised setting for our computers; it took a lot of time and calls. In Athens we went to the athletes lounge, which looked like a large call center and often had to wait in line to get connected. In Beijing the village will be wireless. No need to leave our rooms and high-speed connectivity will be there.

This is a double-edged sword. One of the reasons we are leaving early is to physically and mentally prepare for the Games. There will be minimal distractions and time to focus. The athletes will also need to manage how much time they spend on line!

The flight to Osaka was uneventful, on time and with little excitement. To travel directly to our training venue is a real treat, the hassle of plane changes eliminated. On deplaning, Donovan and I were ushered past a substantial line of passengers due to officials spotting Donovan’s white cane. The guilt of bypassing the queue was transient!

We went through the standard photos and fingerprinting that all visitors to the country must be subjected. Amazingly all bags made it through and after a 45 minute bus ride we were at our hotel. I was amazed at the lack of traffic on the highway with it being freeway for all but the last few blocks. At the hotel the service was stupendous, the bags organized, the keys already for distribution. Within 30 minutes we were enjoying a light snack followed by a short trek to the train and the 1 stop, 4 minute ride to our training facility.

The pool is modern and built to Olympic standard. In fact the British team used the pool for their training camp prior to Beijing. It is a remarkable facility as from November to April it is transformed into an ice rink and in fact there is a local pro hockey team here! Seems a good fit for us Canucks !

The practice was a brief 1 hour 3K, with mostly slow easy swimming. The key will be to maintain a feel for the water and adapt to this time zone as soon as possible. By 10:30 the team had finished dinner at was ready for bed. The next morning would come quickly with 6:15 AM snack and a 7AM practice.