Alpine skier Greta Small carried the Australian Flag at the 2012 Winter Youth Olympic Games in Innsbruck, Austria. Now her Olympic passion burns even brighter as she eyes a start at the 2014 Olympic Winter Games in Sochi, Russia...
BLOG: Since the finish of my 2012/2013 race season at the end of April, I took a break and returned to Australia for the first time in seven months. It felt unreal arriving home after such a long season of training, travelling and racing. I do not usually have time for anything else, between training and Year 12 commitments, so it was nice to refresh at home catching up with friends and doing jobs around the house.
During my time off I attended the Sochi Team Assembly in Melbourne. It was a very motivating experience for me, especially trying on the uniform for the first time as it made it all feel very real. Meeting other prospective team members from winter sports outside the world of skiing, all working towards the same goal as mine was awesome. The Youth Olympic Games introduced me to the long process of selection to an Olympic Team and to some of the officials that will also be part of the Sochi Team, so it is great to have that past experience to reflect upon.
While in Melbourne, the following night my family and I attended the Ski and Snowboard Australia (SSA) Awards. I took away Alpine Athlete of the Year and Alpine Junior Athlete of the Year for the second time in a row. It was great to be acknowledged at home for all my achievements during the past season which was a nice way to finalise the end of the season for me.
Looking forward, I am currently into week 3 of my physical training block in Austria. My trainer Marco, who has been training me for almost five years now, is pushing my fitness and strength to the next level. With up to three physical training sessions a day, sleep is now my new best friend. I find training at this time of year to be very exciting because I know the pain and sweat I feel now is going to push my skiing to the next level which ultimately means going faster!
I was hoping to get some Vitamin D from the sun while here in Austria, but not a chance at the moment. I saw Australia’s first snow for the winter before I left and now I have seen Austria’s first snow for the summer. Life of a winter athlete!
Greta
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