The Opening Ceremony

Hello everyone,

I know some of you are planning to watch the opening ceremony partly in the hope that you will catch a sight of me. I was thinking about wearing a superman outfit to stick out enough so that you can see me, but unfortunatelly, I will have to fit in and wear the outfit you can see on the photo-a white dress and a red jacket (and a very "unique" white hat not shown on the picture).

You want to be looking out for SLOVAKIA not Slovenia or Czechoslovakia :))))). (I don't mean to be condescending or anything, but I know sometimes it's hard to keep track of all the little countries...) I think we are going to march in as number 163, but I am not completely sure. I will try to keep on the right side marching in, so it will bethe left side for you as you are watching. I will be waving the hat (I'll do anything to have it, but not have it on :))))). It will be about 60 people marching so don't have high hopes of seeing me, but who knows..... I will try to take some good pics and videos.

Next time you think losing weight takes a lot of time....

Recently I have eaten in the dinning hall with some wrestlers and competitors in judo from Slovakia (I fit right in :))). Attila Batky pointed to his Hungarian colleague and told me that the guy has seven more days to lose 7.5 kilos (about 17 pounds) to compete in his category. The poor guy had an apple for lunch! I have found out that these guys often don't drink for up to two days before they are weighed and then they have one day to get their bodies back to normal. It seems so crazy, but I guess the system is better than it used to be (they used to weigh them in the morning and they competed the same day!).

I felt extra guilty having an extra piece of cake for dessert that day....

Short video of an early morning in the Olympic Village

This could give you a sense of what it feels like waking up to a very early morning in the Olympic Village. Though I must say, the second morning (today) was a little busier. It is clear that more and more athletes have been arriving.

Four other noteworthy events of the day

1. Here it is. My first encounter with the toilet/hole. I heard about it before leaving for China and tried hard to imagine it, but my imagination came short of what it really is like. It flushed only after I left the porto-potty and I did not dare to go back to see wha the end result was :)))).




2. As I started running today I saw my former Western State College teammate, Rubin McRae! It was quite funny-we looked at each other and were not sure..., not sure..., not sure..., and yeah, could this really be? He is here with the team from New Zealand working as their massage therapist. I do hope to see more of them-if anyone reading this blog from Gunni happens to have his email would you email it to me or post it? I hope to catch up with him more-he said he'd even run with me...

3. I sat next to Amy Begley (Team USA-10,000m) and Nicole Teter (Team USA- 800m) during the dinner tonight. I guess they have just arrived. Pleasant girls. I guess Amy is planning to run her first marathon this fall (either Chicago or New York). It will be interesting how fast she will go.

4. The people from the Slovak Television just about raided my room and made me do an awkward interview. I beg my Slovak friends who see it not to judge my intellect on the way I was expressing (or failing to express) myself :)))). It was pure hell. If I ever commit a crime and they ask you for ideas as to the worst possible punishment, by all means suggest being interviewed on the Slovak National Television.

Yasso's 800m workout

Before the workout

I am excited to report that I have just had the best pre-marathon workout in my career. I was able to average 2:38.2 which, according to Bart Yasso, should translate to a 2:38 marathon in the same conditions. I am not going to get too excited though and my goal will remain to go under 2:42 and finish in the top half. However, this is very, very encouraging.

It was not easy. The fog/smog was even heavier than yesterday. By the time I got to the stadium I was already sweaty, by the time I was done with the first two repeats I was soaked. During the first two repeats I felt quite relaxed. With number five and six I was able to just completely focus and listen to Alex's voice in my head: "Now, this is when it's going to be tough. You just stay with it. It's the middle part that hurts. Just stay with it, stay with it, stay with it....." Once I was done with number 5 and 6 I knew I was going to finish the workout well. The last two started to hurt, for sure, my legs were slowly getting heavy, but given that I was able to get to 2:35 on the last one makes me know that I could have done two more at 2:38ish.

The track was kind of eerie early in the morning (I started my workout at 7:30am, which is when the marathon will start). I was the first and only athlete there for a while. Then other athletes started coming- with their teamates, and their coaches, and possibly even their massage therapists. I felt quite strange being so by myself. But I feel only stronger for it. I was able to do this by myself. No Alex to hide behind when I was running into the wind, no Carre or Rebecca to yell out a word of encoragement. I only had my legs, lungs, and head to make this happen. I must say I am quite proud of myself today. Whether the marathon time that I want happens or not, I know that I have been able to prepare for this race like I had never prepared for a marathon before.

WEll, here are all my splits for my fellow runners out there. I will post another message and some pictures later today.

Repeat 1: 02:39.4, Repeat 2: 2:38, Repeat 3: 02:38.9, Repeat 4: 02:39.3, Repeat 5: 02:37.7, Repeat 6: 02:38.5, Repeat 7: 02:38.9, Repeat 8: 02:35.4

AVERAGE: 02:38.2

On the way to the stadium-as you can see the air was ever heavier/smogier?/foggier? than yesterday....

The track as I started the workout...only a lonely volunteer in the background....