Really, really home now

Well, after all has been said and done, I'm home after a month in China. I wasn't sure if I was going to make it, but I did.

Avie comes home laaaaaaaaaaaaate tomorrow night (tonight???) and then we get to start living a normal life again. Looking forward to it.

Thanks for your support and your interest.

Chat soon.
Patrick

Home, sort of...

Well, I've officially returned to Canada. I made my flight from Beijing to Vancouver okay, watching a few movies, reading a book and making some notes on the development of expertise. I've fired up my cell phone (not the one that the Canadian Olympic Committee gave me, and then asked me to return), called my parents and announced my presence. Now, I'm writing while drinking a coffee at Tim Hortons. Life is getting back to normal.

I guess that I have tomorrow off, since it is a holiday. I'm not getting paid for it, since I'm still away without pay. Not the company's fault: I told them that I was gone until then. I'll use it in lieu in a month or two. I still have Ontario's Civic Holiday to use as well. And ouch: going to the Olympics has hurt. I didn't get paid for a week or two, so the bank account is kinda low. Funny that the money still keeps leaving the account, even when my boss isn't putting anything in.

I'm still kinda wiped out and, to be quite honest, somewhat disenchanted with my Olympic experience. Yes, I achieved one of my life's goals. I even managed to do it with someone I love dearly. That's pretty cool. Yet, there's a certain sense of emptiness that I can't seem to explain.

I'm somewhat disappointed about the International Olympic Committee's failure to ensure that internet sites wouldn't be blocked. As we found out early on, China was blocking Amnesty International's website from readers in China. There was a Tibetian friendly "album" released via Apple's iTunes, so China cut all access to the site for a few days. (Avie had given her cousin an iTouch and couldn't update it because of the blockage.)

Also, while there were 'protest pens', it was reported that nobody actually applied to use them. Hmmmmmmm... It was also reported that anybody who did apply was promptly arrested and detained.

While there, I was constantly confronted by decay and poverty. Buildings everywhere are somewhat run down. I was often confused about whether buildings were being demolished or being rebuilt. You'd see pretty good looking new buildings, surrounded by tents or shacks that we legally couldn't house livestock in, that were the living quarters of the poorest people in China. In the countryside, on our way to Taiyuan, I saw caves dug into the hillsides, which were inhabited by people who couldn't afford a shack. Also, the country is filled with either children or old people, as the youth flock to the cities for work. You see them getting off trains carrying their belongings in burlap bags.

While the standard of living and conditions were depressing, the people are wonderful. Sure, in a crowd or driving, everybody reverts back to the most basic, instinctive levels, resorting to pushing and shoving, holding on to whatever they can. It isn't a system for the meek. While boarding a bus in Taiyuan, I was aggressively pushing back on a surging crowd, so a woman with a baby could board without getting crushed. Later, I gave my seat to an elderly woman (60s+ ?) and she was pleasantly surprised. One to be given a seat, and again because it was from a foreigner. Within an half hour, other younger people clued in, and started giving their seats up. They all mean well, but in the never-ending struggle to get something, they lose sight of what's important. I don't think that this is a Chinese-thing. I think that it is the inevitable outcome of an impoverished nation trying to make ends meet. People are good, but the system changes their immediate goals.

Back to the people of China: genuinely friendly and giving. I was always made to feel welcome. Whatever they had, they would willingly give me. Whether it was food, lodging, hospitality or knowledge, if you were there, you could have it all, without reservation.

Regardless, I'm not in any rush to return. China is a hard place to live. In Canada, I speak the language, I understand the rules, and I am able to do as I please. I don't need translators, nor do I need to involve others. I can wander off and be alone. The further I go, the nearer that I want to be. Even here in Vancouver, on Terra Firma Canadianna, I'm not home. I just want to get home, switch off the world and shut down for a few days.

Damn: I gotta fill up my bank account. No rest for the wicked, I guess.

Ciao for now.
Patrick

Leavin' On A Jet Plane

Okay, I am officially less than 24 hours away from leaving China for a very long trip home. We returned from Taiyuan this morning, after a 3-4 day training session with the Sanxi Provincial Shooting Team. We were supposed to visit some trees, mountains and relics, but fortune smiled upon us (well, me) and the travel agent refused to sell us (foreigners) tickets. Apparently, we're shifty looking and they need government permission (and five days notice) before they can issue us tickets. So, we stayed and trained with our new friends.


I thought that I'd add a few photos from Taiyuan, now that I have a proper connection (apartment line fixed - hoorah!).




This is taken from the Taiyuan Sports School, with some new recruits, Just like in North America, during/after the Olympics, there is a rush of interested participants. The three little guys in the photo are about 10 years old, and the tall young man is 14. They'll be in the range, between 3 and 5 hours training, everyday.



This photo captures about 2/3rds of the Shanxi Provincial Shooting and Archery Federation training facility. In this, you see the buildings that contain the residences, offices and the ranges (10m, 25m, 50m). The dining hall and archery range are off to the extreme righthand side of the photo. As you might guess, the place is huge.

How huge is it? Its this huge. Avie had the entire 40+ position air range to herself (not including me) . The range had more empty positions as you move deeper into the range. In the winter months, the archers practice shooting into the butts at the far end of the hall.

Here is Jiao Lien (Mandarin for coach) Chen (or as my Chinese hun says "Chen Jiao Lien") watches over her three senior female athletes. I say senior based on their three years experience and the scores that they produce. The girl in the foreground, with her pistol raised, is 14 years old. Qin Qin, at the end, is 20. These three young ladies shot a test match the day after this photo and delivered: 386, 373 and 371. Not too shabby.

Here's a happy group of shooters: Wei Jiao Lien, Qin Qin, Zhao Jing Long (my Chinese name) Jiao Lien, Avie and Chen Jiao Lien. Wei and Chen are married and Qin Qin says that they're just like her parents. They're really a good bunch of people, very free with their information and genuinely willing to help others.

In a nutshell, that describes the people of China. I can't say that I like the system, but the people will bend over backwards to help you out, especially foreigners. Any sign that you are willing to give that you respect their culture, like saying anything in Chinese, is greatly appreciated. They want to be understood by westerners and befriended by us.

The Beijing Olympic slogon was "One World One Dream" (which a family friend put up in his restaurant until he was slapped with the threat of a 30,000 RMB - $4600 CDN- fine). Since I first saw it during the Beijing Good Luck Games (May 2008), I wondered what the dream was. Seeing the opening/closing ceremonies and meeting so many of the people, the official theme's lyrics of "we are family" rings true. They want to get to know us and appreciated for what their culture is and how it has positively impacted our global civilization. They want to be equal partners on the world stage. They want to be seen for the similarities among us, as opposed to our differences. I can buy into that dream, with the Chinese people.

Its been a wonderful experience, one which I am so glad that I had. I am absolutely and unquestionably proud of Avianna's performance at her first Olympics. It came early, but it provides one helluva foundation to build upon. Its time to get home and start pouring concrete.

Visiting the Tiayuan Prov. Shooting Team Training Centre

Yesterday, I was pretty impressed with the shooting sports school. Well, I visited the provincial training centre which goes up several notches. This facility, built in 1999 and handed over to the provincial shooting and archery teams, is big enough to host a world cup. Its not as big as Munich, but certainly about the same size as Milan.

The facility is a bit run down, but it gets back to my comments yesterday: its isn't about the amenities. This facility has EVERYTHING a shooting team needs. The air range has 40 positions set up with electronic returning paper targets, with about another 35-40 empty positions (just benches). The 50m range has approx. 36 bays set with paper targets (changed by staff in butts, on radio command), plus another 24 bays not in use. Well, the bays are closed and there are table tennis tables, plus a pool table and weights in the area. There are about 6-8 25m 5-target bays available, with paper targets scored by staff downrange.

Here's the kicker: 11 athletes in the 40+ position air range, 8 athletes in the 50m range and about 7 athletes in the 25m range. This facility is grossly under utilized.

We spent the day talking with our friend, Coach Li (former director of the facility), plus his proteges, as well as the archery coach and a few other people. Lots of information was exchanged, as well as an invitation.

Next year,I can bring a group of archers and shooters to train here assuming that I can find the right mix of talent and work ethic over the next 6 months. Now, that isn't a knock against anybody, but, these guys are good. And they train hard, anywhere up to 5 hours a day, 6 days a week. As a male AP shooter, you need to be shooting 570/600 for consideration. Also, if you can't dryfire hundreds (not 100 or 200, but 300-400) of shots in a 4-5 hour period, then you won't keep up. Essentially, we need to train our athletes, before we can send them for training with the Chinese provincial team.

By the way, how well do they shoot? There was a test match today. The top four full-time athletes (as opposed to the 7 part-time non-resident athletes) shot 588, 586, 586 and 575 respectively. Their finals weren't as good, because the foreigner (me!!!!) watching sort of rattled them. Note: one of these guys beat Pan Wei (Olympic Gold Medalist a couple of weeks ago) at the Chinese Nationals, but wasn't chosen for the Olympic team due to a lack of national training experience. Yep, shot a 588 and wasn't selected for the National team. So, Canada needs to bring together its best and brightest if we want to put up a good showing and gain from the experience.

So, after two days discussing coaching with the various Jiao Lien (Mandarin for 'coach'), I've got a pile of notes which confirm a lot of my thoughts and answer a lot of questions. Now, I just need to get home and map all of this out. My brain hurts, but I am very pleased.

(And no, Richard, I'm not rejuvenated. I'm currently at a hotel which has reasonable all-you-can -drink coffee. That works for now.)

It Isn't About the Range - Visiting a Chinese Shooting School

Today was pretty damn cool. I'm about 8 hours (by train) south of Beijing, in a city called Taiyuan, in the Province of Sanxie. Taiyuan has a population of about 4 million (Toronto is a runt), and instead of being built up, its spread out. The air and sound pollution is unlike anything I've experienced before and the drivers make Beijing look like Toronto's Sunday drivers. Its a crazy place.

But... it has a regional shooting school.

Actually, it has a sports school which teaches three sports: archery, fencing and shooting (just rifle and pistol - sorry trap and skeet enthusiasts). In Sanxie province, there are 11 regional sports schools and 8 of them feature shooting. As I said, Taiyuan has one of the regional shooting schools, plus it has the provincial shooting school. We'll be hitting the provincial facility tomorrow.

As you could imagine, I was pumped when we had this arranged. Not many people get the full guided tour, as well as having a knowledgable translator asking the staff questions. Avie had some questions, but she was prepared to work her tush off, asking questions and repeating responses. She is as intelligent as she is cute, so I was enthusiastic about the visit.

When we arrived, it didn't look like much. The building is a bit rough around the edges. While its funded by the government, they aren't living a lavish lifestyle. The grounds consist of a long building for the fencers, just wide enough for three fencers abreast to advance and retreat. There were about 4-6 archery butts at 70m, looking a bit run down. And then there were the ranges...

There was one running target range with two bays, which they still train athletes in. Then, there was the 25m range with about 20 positions (gotta check my photos), a 50m range with 22 positions and finally a 10m range with about 15 positions. Each were kinda the same: a little run down, a little dark, a little musty, and all in desperate need of a good scrub and some paint.This is an older facility, from the 1950s, and hasn't been updated lately. Some of the other schools have, but this is still on the waiting list. The equipment they had ranged from rusty FWB C10s, to shiny new Morini 161s. I saw one pupil training with a Margolin. I hate to say it, but in the West, people would turn their nose up and walk away, vowing never to shoot in such a place. Fools...

Upon entering the 25m range, I saw a row of juniors, between 10 and 18, lined up against the wall dryfiring. I was in heaven. These kids were training and training well. Notebook in hand, I started asking questions of the coaches. The coaches knew their stuff. (BTW: They're doing pretty much the same thing we're doing, but they're putting in the time to make it stick.) Each athlete has a gun which is fitted to him/her, and available solely for them all year long (unless they improve and warrant an upgrade).

And they produce shooters. Damn good shooters. Not because they have the prettiest range, the newest guns or electronic targets (all paper in Tiayuan). They have the ranges with the right distances. They have guns that met specs and are always available. Finally, they have coaches who are dedicated to their success.

It isn't the range: its what is inside it. The people and the desire to improve. My old club, the CNRA, was run down, but it had people in it who wanted to go to the Olympics. That's what makes a range great. Any range, especially your own, can experience that greatness. Its just up to you.

Thoughts on the Olympics...

Or How Patrick Alienates the Canadian Shooting Community (well, I hope not.)

I've been in Beijing for about 4 weeks, watching the Olympic Games. I've seen it as an insider, coaching an athlete and living in the Village, as a spectator in the stands, and as part of the television audience. Its been an eye-opener, to say the least.

I've written and deleted this entry a few times now. Maybe instead of being witty and intelligent (well, I've tried: you be the judge), I'll just spit it out?

The Olympics are big. Really big. The Canadian system doesn't adequately support our athletes to get to the podium, neither from the COC level, nor from the SFC level. This isn't meant as an insult: its just a reality. Consequently, Canadian shooting athletes must be prepared to go it alone.

You must be your own source of inspiration, motivation and financial support. If you are waiting for an organization to deliver free high performance services to you, you are wasting your time. Similarly, complaining about not getting any support will get you the same results. Switching provincial or national bodies will just mean that you'll have someone new to be mad at. The answer does not lie in them.

You are your own support system. More than anybody else, you know your strengths and weaknesses. When talking to yourself, if you're honest, you'll know how high you can go. Similarly, you'll know if you are willing to make the sacrifices necessary to get there. If you can get there and are willing to make sacrifices, you'll find the people who can help you. You'll be able to demonstrate to others that you're the real deal. People will buy into your dream and get on board to help you out. Coaches will supply their time and facilities will open up, because everybody wants to be a part of success.

Quest for Gold Funding or Sport Canada carding (or any grant money for that fact) can't buy a steady hold or a smooth trigger release. Massive amounts of time practicing is the only currency that expertise accepts. (Sorry Visa.) If you're unwilling or unable to find 15-25 hours a week to train with gun in hand(s) all by yourself for several years, then you're not going to make it to the Olympic level. Aspiring provincial or national champs need to put in 10-20 hours over many years, so they haven't got it much easier.

School and work are important aspects of life. If you can't take time away from them, what can you cut back on? I would wager that most of us (including me) could use their time better. Make some choices and cut accordingly. If you can't sacrifice either your social activities, or your other involvements, then perhaps you should rethink your priorities. If you legitimately can't find the time, then you're overextended and must accept that high-performance sport may not be in your future. Accept your priorities and live regret-free with your decisions. That's cool.

Excellence in sport is hard. Coming here has taught me that much. If we want to get to the top of the heap, we need to work as hard as we can and expect to do it alone. In a sense, we're stranded on an island. We can complain about the fact that there is no help, that the captain grounded us here, and that we don't have a GPS. Or we can figure out how to survive the first night and start making a boat. We can take the situation into our own hands and create our own destiny. It may not be the best plan; but, its infinitely better that sitting down and effectively waiting to die. I prefer that challenge and that is what I've taken from these Olympics.

(By the way, if you're a pistol athlete and agree with the above line of thought AND are willing to make those sacrifices, please contact me. I'd be very pleased to speak with you.)

Where Everything is For Sale...

We visited the Silk Street Pearl Market, where everything is for sale and quality is assured. The place is insane.


Despite the madness, Avianna and Lien kept their smiles, as always.

The crowds here are impossible . People crammed in, no prices in sight, and every vendor asking if you want to get a special deal just for you. Ummmmmm, they lacked sincereity.

Clothing for all season was available here. BTW: there were 5-6 floors just like this. Imagine the Downtown Hbc store, but divided up into 5x10 stalls.

All the major brands (Ferrari shown) have outlets here. Polo, Abercombie, etc. You name it, they got it.

Did I mention that everything is for sale here? I don't think that the foreigners chatting them up should open with "Excuse me, miss, but are you free for the evening?" It was a first in China, for me, to see some of the Jarvis Street crowd out, so, like any good tourist, I took a picture. Note: there's another guy on the picture doing the exact same thing.

Ciao.

Pics of a Day in Beijing

Okay, I have internet, so I'm uploading and writing fast! Here are a few pics that I took a few days ago, just to give you a feel for Beijing.

The above pic is of Dongdan Station, which is on Line 1, which cuts east/west through Beijing. It allows transfers to Line 5, which runs north/west. North is to the main Olympic venues, like the Bird's Nest and the Water Cube. Two trains come in and disgorged their contents into the hall, and I stood very still to take this shot.

On my way to Canada Olympic House, I saw cars pulling over and people staring at a building. apparently, China versus somebody in Men's Basketball was on. China eventually won, but it was a tight game. People were standing in the streets. Taxis pulled over and gaped. Cops didn't even try to look like they were busy. Everyone was glued to the gigantic TV screen. Where were the protesters when they had their opportunity???

Just a busy street at night, all lit up, for your enjoyment.

This tower is supposed to be a dragon's head. Personally, I can't see it. I thought that it was supposed to represent the Olympic torch. What the hell do I know????

Avie scored seats to the Water Cube, so here we are. We were joined by Shaun Majumder of CBC fame.

The Cube looks interesting outside...

But inside is much more impressive.

And, a daytime shot of the Bird's Next, for your viewing pleasure.

Some Thoughts as the Olympics Wind Down

Tomorrow is the last day of the Olympics and, to be honest, I'm glad. While I travel around a lot, I'm not a traveller. I like "my place", whatever or wherever that place may be. Currently, its Toronto.

There always seems to be some urgency to go "somewhere" and do "something" when I am on one of these trips. Technically, even when I'm sitting on my ass, I'm doing something. Its called "sitting on my ass." It didn't happen by accident. I made a conscious choice and, thank you very much, I'm happy with the decision. While this notion doesn't sit well with eveyone, I'm okay with it, and since I'm writing the blog, that's what makes it to print.

Regardless, I did do something today: visit the Silk Street Pearl Market. Think of it as the Christians being thrown to the Lions, except that there are zillions of lions and zillions of Christians. If you avoid eye-contact and smile like an idiot, you might just make it out alive. I was there to find something, and Lien and Avianna were my guides.

Actually, Avie was trying to keep me from freaking out (I hate crowds and this place was CROWDED) and Lien was bartering. There are NO prices listed anywhere. You barter for everything. See something you like and ask how much OR offer 10 RMB ($1.40 CDN). They scream in disgust and accuse you of stealing food from their starving children. You counter that they are taking the money meant for your ailing mother's lung transplant. Haggling ensues and you buy an original Ming vase for the equivalant of a Big Mac and a side of fries (med., no drink).

Now, I'm a guy. When I walk into a store, I don't window shop. I look for what I want, buy it, and then get the hell out. Women "shop". They look at stuff and inquire, even when they aren't remotely interested in buying it. Its like teasing on the first date: guage interest and then deny. So, Avie and Lien were looking at stuff and I was getting hit on right left and centre (yes: surrounded on all fronts in this zoo.) Everyone shouting, "Sir, do you need a watch/sunglasses/shirt/bracelet/necklace..." The list of artciles to be bought went on ad nauseum. Eventually, I just put on my sunglasses and plugged in my iPod, shutting them all out. Even without the iPod on, they didn't know.

Our internet is down again and I'm at another aunt's house. They took very good care of me, and now I have to go. I have a secial bottle of Mou Tai of the highest quality. It was a gift to my aunt, and she's the head obstetrician at one of teh big hospitals here. So, its the good stuff. Now I just have to figure out how to get it home.

Speaking of home, I've been told that I've been doing nothing for too long, and I must leave.

Never got to my Olympic thoughts, but I'll maybe hit an internet cafe when I get home.

Watching Some TV and Media Disinterest Confirmed

I was out tonight, having dinner at an aunt's place. Oddly enough, the Olympics were on. Remember how I said that China wasn't interested in 2nd and 3rd place? Tonight, all the highlights and all the coverage backed up that believe.

• In men's kayaking, all you saw was the GB athlete who won.
• In the walking marathon, you see the fellow who took Gold, and the Chinese athlete who came in 14th.
• I was watching the decathlon 1500m qualification heats. You'd never know that there were more than the one runner who lead the pack.
• In the Men's 4x100 Relay, you saw Jamaica win and China miss the hand-off. CCTV never even listed the final results.

In China, if you're not Number One, then you're nobody.

An Evening at the Bird's Nest

Avie bought a whack of GOOD seats in the National Stadium for the family to see "Athletics". I didn't know what to expect other athn the fact that it would be pretty cool to see the Olympics there, watching the events commonly associated with the Olympics.

I was amazed how close we were to the action: Tier 1 (ground level), 8th row. At one point, I think one of the Cuban athletes got of the track and walked past us after speaking with her coach.

We saw several events: steeplechase, high jump, triple jump, 10000 meter, and 400m women's hurdles. Very cool. So, here are a few of my shots.

The Bird's Nest at night is truly impressive. It glows and the Olympic Flame just mesmerizes you. Words and my photo don't do it justice.

Videos: A Walk Around in the Park

I took a walk around the apartment a few days ago and shot some video. Here they are, unedited. Hopefully, you have the right codecs to watch them. ;-)


The first video is from the kite park. There were about 6-10 guys (yes, its a male-dominated sport), all with falcon/hawk-shaped kites. It wasn't enough to make the kites fly high. These fellows made it look like the bird's were swooping and attacking. Very impressive show.

Next we have an aspiring Table Tennis Pro. There is a club along one of the streets and I stopped in around 8:45, to see the people train. This little fellow was the star pupil. The coach was very happy to let me take his video. I have to go back there with some Canadian Olympic pins.

Hmmmmmm... Seeing how slow these uploads are, and the fact that I'm up in a few hours, maybe I'll hold off for a day or two to get you more videos.

Thoughts on Coaching

And now for some completely different...

The Chinese coaching model is viewed as selection versus development. In selection, you find potential athletes with the right physical characteristics, then train them to the best of your abilities. As athletes "fail", they are weeded out of the program, leaving the remainder to cycle through the training/elimination program, until the top competitor emerges. In North America and Europe (former Soviet Bloc nations excluded), the model is about development. Encourage participation and then find potential athletes. From there, motivate them to train and make coaching/training resources available. As less motivated athletes drop out and remaining athletes improve, resources are funnelled to them, improving their training and assisting them in their skill development.

In Canada, shooting is difficult. We don't have the recreational talent pool as in the past. We don't have facilities and solid support for developing and competitive shooters. Also, there is no cash incentive for success. Success in basketball, hockey or baseball, can lead to life changing levels of financial prosperity. Shooting will only lead to personal development (and financial ruination????)

Our challenge is finding motivated athletes who truly want to develop within the sport. We need to convince them that they need to train hard for the sake of excellence. There is no point for a shooting coach to chase any athlete, begging or nagging them to get out to the range or come to camps. It really offers no benefit to the athlete, and reduces the energy of the coach.

Joan MacDonald, the Canadian Archery Coach (5 or 6 Olympics under her belt), estimates that 1 in every 200 athletes that she sees has the potential (skill, interest and motivation) of making it to the elite international level. It isn't the role of the coach to make every participant an Olympian. The coach needs to see who that "1 in 200" is and then channel resources to that person. I'm starting to see the wisdom of that philosophy.

As a coach, I guess that my age of innocence is being extinguished by experience. I've been concerned about what it takes to get athletes motivated. (Imagine Darth Vader with an athlete: "I find your lack of motivation disturbing.")

As a coach, I need to communicate the value of a program, as well as provide opportunities for growth. Also, I need to make it clear about what I want to do: develop international competitors. I respect the value of recreational shooting and I participate in it for my own enjoyment. But, would I take "Patrick Haynes" on as a developmental international athlete? Nope. He's too old, out of shape (but getting better!), doesn't have enough experience and has too many interests (distractions from training). Great guy, but not on the Olympics pathway. I'd shoot with him and if he wanted coaching, I'd offer some general instruction and then hand him off to some coaches who are working with rec. shooters.

That being said, I want to work with athletes certain athletes. They have to have age, skill, experience and fitness working for them, striking a balance between them. The younger you are, the greater opportunity to develop skill, experience and skill. As you grow older, you have to have the skills, experience and fitness in place. As such, at 50 and out of shape, you can't pick up a new sport and expect to get to the Olympics within the next quadrennial or two.

As well, these athletes must be single-minded in vision. If your goal is excellence, you can't be wishy-washy. To be great, you need to put in considerable time training. Gymnasts put in 36-40 hours a week for many years before making it to the Olympics. Ericsson, in his work on expertise, says that on average it takes 10,000 hours and 10 years of deliberate practice to develop the skills necessary to be truly great internationally. The athletes have to decide that they are willing to train hard and sacrifice a lot to get to that level of performance. A coach can't make them do it, at least not in our Canadian system.

Fortunately, I'm working with some athletes who love the sport, have a good balance of attributes and experience, and are trying to find ways to train within the constraints of their lifestyles. My job then is to fill in the gaps and help them attain our mutual goal: their international success. Wish us luck. (Better yet, send cash!!!!)

PS: I'm hoping not to come off as the Anti-Canadian Elitist. I believe that there is a need for sport for all. Right now, I just want to work with true competitors. We need that in the Canadian system as well.

Media and Sports in China

So, what's being said in Beijing? While I was unwell and stranded at the apartment without internet, I had a chance to watch one station on TV. Well, we have more than one channel; but, oddly enough, all but one is in Mandarin. Go figure.

I've been watching CCTV (I think it stands for China Central Television) International, which is broadcast in English. It is a news channel with traffic, weather, features and updates. They have foreigners and English speaking Chinese on the program. One program, Dialogue, has a host who poses questions to one or two guests. The question format goes like "Western media has been highly critical of (issue X). Most agree that this is unfair and shows the China-bashing attitude of the west. Your thoughts?" Yes, a little odd, like Martin Short's "Jimmy Glick", but it moves the conversation along.

First, the Chinese media is very concerned/interested in how it is being perceived by the West. They seem to want to be seen as "an emerging sports superpower". It almost seems like being "good" isn't good enough. They want to be dominant. For instance, they have an overwhelming lead in the race for Olympic gold medals, but the US has the lead (currently) in overall medals won. Having more people in the Top 3 seems less important than having the most people in first place. Individual excellence is regarded as better than general program strength. There is a saying that "When you're in second place, you're the first place loser." That is a reality in China. A silver is a failure. Chinese shooter Tan won bronze in Free Pistol and was derided in the press as "blowing" the match. (Tan's bronze medal has subsequently been upgraded to silver, since the North Korean shooter who "won", tested positive for beta-blockers and was sent home medal-less.)

Second, it isn't about participation: they're in it to win. The Chinese men's soccer team is, by international standards, not very good. The national question is about whether or not to quit the sport. "Go big or go home." If they can't win, then they will honestly consider withdrawing from the sport altogether. One of the UK commentators couldn't understand that philosophy, as soccer is THE sport in England, even though internationally, they haven't won in many years. Whether or not China will stay in soccer remains to be seen.

Third, China isn't as strong in team sports, as opposed to individual sports. This is believed to come back to its program philosophy of selection versus choice. In China, you don't pick a sport and join in. You are funnelled into sports at a young age, based on your physical characteristics and aptitudes. Once in a program, the system trains the hell out of you and weeds out people who can't handle competition. Eventually, top Chinese competitors emerge on the international scene. The view then is that this works fine for individual sports (shooting, archery, running, etc.) but there is a different dynamic in team sports. Cooperation, communication, skill diversity, etc. are harder to define at age 6.

Also, there isn't much of a recreational team sport culture here. Around the world, kids play soccer for fun. In England, the UK commentator mentioned that there are 1 million plus rec. players, which provide a huge talent pool for them. In China, through its selection program, has identified a significantly smaller percentage of England's pool. So, while China has won the overall population game, they're very far behind in the talent pool race. This reinforces the view that in China, sports is a career, not a past-time. (Once, Avie was asked by a Chinese shooter what she makes as an engineer. When he heard the reply, he couldn't understand why she would be involved with shooting. They don't love the sport for what it is, as much as for what it gives them: a demanding and challenging career, offering pay and relative comfort.)

What do I take from this: there is a belief that China can dominate in niche or individual sports (shooting) but will struggle when coming up against world sports (soccer/football or basketball). Then, we return to the question of whether China will pickup its ball and go home, or suck it up and figure out how to win in that realm.

Speaking of talent pools, China has a huge advantage overall. Look at Bejing. It has 13 million people (almost half of Canada) living here. In it, Beijing has 12,000 professional athletes, of which 44 were chosen to compete in the 2008 Olympics and 5 are/were medal winners/contenders. (Yes, the stats were coming at me fast, and they were supplied by the Chinese host, whose English is "odd".) Does Canada have that many pro athletes? Maybe with hockey, but the concentration skews the figures dramatically.

I'd like to see what Australia is doing. They have a population of 20 million (according to an Aus. commentator on Dialogue) and they're doing much better than Canada is doing, even in shooting. Now, they do pay athletes, like China. I've heard that prior to the Comm Games in Melbourne, some Aus. shooting team members received $35k to take the year off and train. (Hearsay, not confirmed, so take it as you like.) Regardless, they won medals. (Now, to be honest, they've also imported at least two Russian shooters, so that may be artificially inflating the success rate of their program.)

I've gotten off topic, so I'll end this post here and enter another one on coaching.

News of My Death Are Somewhat Exaggerated

Several days have passed and I'm back in the blog-sphere. No, I didn't get hit by another car. I got hit by a bug. As a result, I've been suffering from diarrhea for the last few days. Finally, I called the medical staff with the Canadian Team, and I am getting treated in the Olympic Village. Free Powerade to bring up my electrolytes (suffering from dehydration) and free internet.

While feeling lousy, I did see a few things. Yesterday, I dragged my butt down to the Bird's Nest. Avie had bought several tickets for Track and Field. The seats were AMAZING, 8 rows from the triple jump pit. The tickets were expensive, but worth it. From them, we saw the high jump, steeple chase (where one woman gave herself a concussion during a nasty fall in front of us - video to follow eventually), triple jump, 10km, 400m hurdle, hammer throw... The list goes on. When people initially think of the Olympics, these are the sports that they normally envision, and there we were. Many thanks to Avie for getting these tickets.

Also, I visited a community internet cafe. Wow: talk about different. First, they take your passport (Chinese citizens provide govt issued IDs) and scan it into their Police ("Chinese Cultural Defense Ministry"?? - I'll go back and get the wording) system, along with a photo they take right then. Then they assign a pin to that ID, which you enter into the computer to surf. EVERYTHING you do if logged. Its illegal to "query" (search via Google/Yahoo/etc.) illegal topics. It is alot dfferent thatn what we're used to in North America.

I need to head out. I'm still weak and not feeling great. Few more days and I'll be up and on my feet.

Patrick

The Foundation is in Place

Again, a lot of things have transpired, and I'll try to cram as much as I can recall in one post. I may take a few posts to get everything across. Remember: these are my personal thoughts and opinions, not reflecting any body or authority. They are nothing but my own personal ramblings.

Avie's Sport Match

Simply stated, things didn't go as planned. Then again, how do you plan for something as big as someone's first Olympics? Yes, we spoke to people "in the know". We competed at the test event. Avie put in about 850 training hours between Sept. 1, 2007 and Aug. 8, 2008 (on top of her full time job as an engineer). We spoke with sport psychologists, tai chi masters, elite athletes and other coaches.

In the last few months, scores were very promising in training. Without making excuses or claiming greatness, Avie produced scores which could have placed her in the top 20 at the Olympics. But, competitions aren't decided by what you can do at home. Unfortunately, in training, consistency was an issue. Scores fluctuated. With all the work, all of the lessons learned hadn't been fully ingrained. So, "on the day of", instead of a peak, Avie hit a valley. Understandably, she took it hard.

The Olympics is a tough arena. You're up against the best in the world. BEING one of best is a small consolation for a true competitor when the desired results aren't produced. You want to represent your nation. You want to thank all of your supporters with a good showing, maybe even a medal. You want the greatness inside of you to shine forth. unfortunately, sometimes, it just doesn't happen according to plan.

Moving Forward

You can't change the past, but you can learn from it. When I work with athletes, a lot of importance is placed on the shooting diary. The diary acts as a bridge between training sessions, supporting continuous learning. It also adds clarity, ensuring that key points are captured and addressed when appropriate. Writing a diary is tough and there is no singular formula to use when making entries. I suggest that athletes answer the following three questions:

1. What did I do well?
2. What can I improve upon?
3. What will I work on next?

What are my first impressions upon wrapping up the match? How would I answer those questions?

What was done well?

Avie learned how to train and learned what was needed to make changes in her performance. As mentioned earlier, she put in around 850 hours training in the last 11 months, well over the 350-400 hours in the previous year. That's a significant increase, while maintaining and succeeding at a full time job. (Plug for OANDA.COM who supported Avie with enthusiasm and flexible hours, which assisted her get to Beijing.)

She also learned how to stave off injury, for the most part. Her shoulder is a bit iffy at the moment, needing attention by the COC medical staff, but okay overall. If she didn't properly warm-up, cool-down and treat the shoulder and elbow, she'd never have gotten this far. (Note: If you think that stretching and physical preparation aren't important for shooters, save your money and don't buy new equipment. You won't be competing with it very long.)

While there were ups and downs in the performance, the "ups" outweighed the "downs". Avie came back from some rough shots. One needs to know how to do that because perfection is elusive. While its a consistency thing, you need to handle adversity well a couple of times before you can handle it all the time. She's started down that path and I'm excited to see where it goes.

Most importantly, Avie made it to the Olympics. No, it wasn't about travelling. She's a competitor, not a tourist. She came here to perform, regardless of the outcome. That's a tough environment to be in, and not many people ever get here. Avie did and she wants to come back. Now Avie knows what the environment is like. With this knowledge, Avie can prepare for the Games, so she can perform at the Games.

What can be improved upon?

Off the top of my head, the training was working, but we started too late. Now, in all fairness, the 2008 Olympics weren't in the plan. I am a devotee of Ericsson's work on the development of expertise. The general Long-Term Athlete Development Model borrows from it and expands upon it, saying that an individual needs about 10,000 hours and 10 years deliberate practice (specific term) to develop expertise in most chosen domains of endeavour. There are some great books on the subject and I can send a copy of the initial research paper (when I get home) to anyone that wants it.

Well, Avie is just completing her 6th year in the sport. Our goal was to prepare her for her 10th year in the sport with the 2012 London Olympics. Then, she went and screwed up the plan, by winning a quota at the Pan American Games. Go figure. All of a sudden, we had an Olympics to prepare for in just over a year.

We needed more time to do it though. In the LTAD model (great read), you work an athlete from "Training to Train", through "Training to Compete", to "Training to Win". (There's a retirement phase, but shooters NEVER retire. They just stop paying team fees. *s*) Avie needed to be moved rapidly out of "Training to Train" into "Training to Compete".

So, I think that she did this very well, given the time frame. If this was run in another year, the training would have shown. But, the Olympics isn't about the past or the future. It is the "Best of the Day." Get there and give your all. Let the officials rank the results and hand out the cookies. Learn for the experience and move on. That's all that one can ever hope for.

Without question, there are other things that can be improved upon, by myself and by Avie. But those things are meant for review in a couple of weeks, looking back at the year, when we return home.

What will I work on next?

Personally, I need to become a better coach. For the most part, I was stuck on the sidelines, due to accreditation issues. Yes, I was accredited, but not allowed to do anything during the actual competition. That needs to be fixed in the future, so coaches can coach their athletes when times get tough.

Regardless, I need to become better during the training year. Athletes aren't the only ones with consistency or focus issues. I can be very handy on the technical side. Unfortunately, work clouds my focus, as does stress. Sometimes, I want to switch off and withdraw from the world. I need to manage those needs with the needs of my athletes.

I want more practical coach training. The ISSF coach academy is good but it is more theory. I want to closely observe what some of the more experienced coaches are doing and saying with their athletes. I need to be an active participant in that process. I've initiated a dialogue with a few fellows, and we'll see where that goes.

Today's Summation (Finally!!!!)

I am extremely proud of Avie and what she has accomplished. She is still relatively new to this sport (just over 6.5 years since first picking up a pistol). In this short period of time, she has grown from newbie to Olympian. Avie has learned what the Olympics entails. She's undergone intense media scrutiny and performed in front of family and friends in her mother country. That's a lot to deal with and she made it out alive. Not too shabby.

To be honest, I am extremely excited about what the future holds for Avie. She's intelligent and learns from experience. She's a competitor and a fighter. (She's also damn cute, but I'm biased.) Avie will move through these tough moments and make the future she desires. She has laid a foundation, upon which an impressive house will be built.

I had better sign off and run. I've been hogging this laptop at COH for about 2-3 hours and several people are plotting my demise.

Take care and chat soon.
Patrick
Patrick

In case you can't post a comment...

A few folks have mentioned that they can't post comments, while other people have. I would say "check your browser settings to enable pop-up windows". If that doesn't work, feel free to email me at pwhaynes_34@yahoo.com

Take care.
Patrick

Did I mention that I got hit by a car?

Still trying to catch up. I'm in Canada Olympic House, enjoying free food, free beer (please excuse the typos) and wonderful hospitality. Nishi Aubin is one of the COH people here, possibly the lead. She and her team are doing a wonderful job, making sure that the Family and Friends of Canadian Olympians are well cared for. If you have a question, Nishi gets the answer pronto. Really quite impressive.

What can I tell you? I went for a walk around my apartment in the west end of the city, near Bajiao Amusement Park subway station. Its about 15 minutes by taxi or 45 minutes by transit from the Olympic Shooting Cluster. It is a series of gated apartment blocks which are mostly middle class. In Lien's complex, there are 4 or 5 buildings, which are nice.

I got up late again (becoming a wonderful habit) and headed out for a walk around 7:30. Lien was coming back from the market with some breakfast treats (steamed pork buns and deep-fried bread - very very yummy); but, I wanted to go exploring. Besides, I'd only be that much more appreciative of the food if I was hungry from the walk. I grabbed my little camera and off I went.

I ended up wandering through Half Moon Park again. This time, I took time to see what people were doing. There were two groups doing Ti Chi sword (one group with straight swords and the other using a curved scimitar), using different styles, with/without music, group participation/instruction. Then there were the ladies using some sort of gyroscopic top which was being twirled on a string between two handheld sticks. (Poor description, but the beer is free and the activity is hard to describe.) Finally, in this park, there were runners, walkers, slappers (yes, they walk and slap their hands, arms, legs, backs as a form of exercise or self-massage). The majority of all these people were seniors who stayed mobile and active. My grandfather used to say "When you sit down, you die." He was very active in his later years and would have fit right in here. well, other than the fact that he was a foreigner and didn't speak any Mandarin.

From there I cut back to the main street, past the market with the tasty food, and north towards the hotel (Mercure Wanshang) we stayed at in April for the "Good Luck Beijing" World Cup. Near the hotel, there is a large flat park (the Half Moon Park is heavily landscaped with hills, paths and shrubbery!) with heavy winds whipping through it. Of course, these winds make it perfect for kites.

There were about 8-10 kite flyers in the park. All of them seem to by flying home-made kites that are hand-welded frames, covered with hand-painted plastic or cloth, such that they look like birds of prey. Falcons, not Klingon war ships, but that would be cool too. The kites go so high that the flyer spools out 100+ feet of cable from a handheld wheel. While initially I was impressed with the flyers' talents, I soon noticed that the park is surrounded by power cables. Hmmm, wire cable... power lines... Draw your own conclusions.

I headed out of the park and up the street to the Wanshang. There are some gardens and such that really catch your eye, especially when you're thinking of taking pictures. That was when I got tagged by a car. In all fairness, he/she only hit my hand, leaving a gritty smudge and some stinging fingertips. It was only a glancing blow, so I didn't take it (for any SCA fighters reading this.) I decided at that point to:

• unplug my iPod
• look both ways before crossing the street
• continue looking both ways while crossing the street
• look both ways well after crossing the street because these drivers are frickin' crazy

But I digress. Street signs are more of a suggestion that a rule in Beijing. Everyone near the road must be aware.

I kept walking (cautiously) around the block and decided to check out the local table tennis (pingpong) club. It wasn't even 9 am and people were there playing. I wandered in and pulled out my camera. I saw this little guy trying to return a serve from a coach. When I asked if I could take a picture, the head coach (???) said sure and gently pulled aside the novice kid and sent in his star pupil, about 10 years old. HOLY CRAP: Could that kid return the serves!!!! It was like a machine. The assistant coach would tap a ball across the net, while picking up another ball to send over, repeating the sequence quickly. as fast as he could deliver the kid would swing and hit, swing and hit, swing and hit, about every 2-3 seconds. This kid could do it all day and probably do his math homework simultaneously. Amazing. (I have video which I'll upload if the internet connection gets working at home.)

Finally, I made it home, to eat the tasty treats that Lien provided, much to my satisfaction. She really takes care of me here.

From the apartment, I decided to hit COH to pick p my Family and Friends CARE package: a backpack, hat and t-shirt, all free for athlete family/friends. This was my first solo excursion on the subway, so far afield. And COH is hard to find for the unitiated. As it turns out, it isn't too hard, but it is a long trip. Beijing, population 13 million, is big. It took 1:45 from the apartment to COH, predominately on the subway. Luckily, the trains I rode were both air conditioned. There are still some older ones in operation which only have forced air to cool the inhabitants.

While I was only going to stay for a bit, Avie has informed me that there is a Shooting Team dinner at the Canadian Performance Centre, beside COH at 7 pm. I've been hanging around for a few hours here, waiting for Avie to pick me up.

I better go. She'll be here in an hour and I need to finish this beer. Its Bud, but its free. (Actually, I only had two over 3 hours, so parents need not worry.)

Chat soon.

Catching Up

Whole bunch of things have happened and before I could logon, somebody switched off the Internet. Maybe they downloaded it all and deleted the original. I'm not too sure. ;-)

Avie shot her first match, air pistol, yesterday. We arrived just after 8 AM and the stands were packed for the 9 AM start. I managed to whine, errrrr, chat with one of the volunteers to get behind Avie's shooting position, so I could watch her better. Then, I explained that I was "Jia-na-da jiao-lien" (Canadian coach). They either understood or thought that I was crazy, and gave me a seat. I pulled out a stack of Canadian pins and became the second most popular foreigner in China (Mark Rowswell, or Da-shan, is #1 here). I got the seat and settled in, with a Buddhist prayer braclet (beads, like a rosary?) and several China stickers as returning gifts. (Yes, again, people took pictures with me, the Hairy Foreigner! What can I say, I'm big in China.)

Avie came in, didn't look back, and focused on her match. She looked concentrated and confident. Sighting shots were okay, neither great nor bad. The first few record shots were rough though, costing her a bit. I don't know how to explain what she was going through. No matter how hard you prepare psychologically for a big event, when it happens, you have to adjust.

So, the first 10 shots weren't her best, but from there on, she improved. Her timing was good and her delivery pretty consistent. She never looked back at the audience until she was finished. Good thing too, as I was sitting on the edge of my seat, on pins and needles the entire time.

While watching Avie, I was positioned behind Katerina Paderina (sp?) from Russia. She ended up setting an new Olympic preliminary record of 391/400. I've never seen anything like it and I was sure that nobody could catch her. Then, I heard that the Chinese shooter, Guo, had shot 390. Reviewing the scores, it looked like we had a fight for the Gold medal, and a fight for Bronze.

As the finals rolled out, Paderina made a fatal flaw on her second or third shot, shooting 8.5/10.9 and Guo shot 10.5, I think. Instead of one point ahead, Paderina was now one point behind. Shots were delivered, but Paderina never reclaimed the lead. With that one shot, it was over.

This reinforces one of the things that I believe about shooting. You don't have to shoot perfectly, but you can't make mistakes. The competition is so tight that you can't waste one shot: its fatal.

At the end of the day, Avie is adjusting well to working at this new level of pressure. She's putting a lot on herself and feels the support coming from home and family here. (She definitely appreciates it, so keep it coming.) Nonetheless, its different and something that she needs to work through. And Avie is doing it well and learning from the experience. She's soaking it all up, as she prepares for the next Olympics in 2012, in London. (We'll need your support through the next four years as well!)

Facebook Fan Page

Hi folks.

Internet has been out at my apartment since the torrential rains yesterday. Apparently, Mother Nature didn't hear the Beijing weather department's promise of clear skies for the Olympics. Regardless, Canada Olympic House has laptops and internet (and coffeeeeeeeeeee) available, all free.

That being said, Nooshin (one of Avie's colleagues) has started a Facebook fan page. Check it out at:
http://www.new.facebook.com/pages/Avianna-Chao/30476277151

More news to come.
Patrick

Twelve hours and counting...

Well, Avie shoots in just about 11.5 hours. I brought my cameras to capture her in practice a few days ago. Here she is shooting air pistol and also sport pistol.






On an unrelated note: I was asked about the death of an American tourist in Beijing today. I was surprised, especially with the police presence here. I saw a fight breakout last night near Tiananmen Square, between a street vendor and someone else. Before it got too intense, police descended and put an end to it. Still, for about 3-4 minutes, they went at it. Unfortunately, a knife-wielding crazed person can end a life in that little period of time. People here are shocked, as it is very safe for foreigners. I can only imagine how much tighter the security will become with this incident in mind.

Mixed Messages in Beijing

I went to view the Opening Ceremonies for the Beijing Olympics last night. Since I couldn't afford/get tickets, I watched the CBC feed from the BC Pavillion beside Tiananmen Square. Canada Olympic House, which supports Canadian Olympians' families and friends abroad, threw a party and arranged the feeds. Actually, they fed us as well: BC salmon, prime rib sandwiches, stirfry and ribs, plus dessert, popcorn, wine and beer (Budweiser, not Labatts or Molsons *sigh*) . All for free which was a very nice thing indeed. I may have gained a pound or two.

Highlight of the evening: lots of proud parents/brothers/sisters in attendance, cheering anything Canadian and singing "Oh Canada". The people at COH really did a great job.

I stayed long enough to watch Canada, and more importantly, Avianna enter the stadium. I videotaped the monitor and then viewed/rewound, until I was sure that I had found her, with her hat on sideways. Before I could text her that questions, she called me from the floor of the stadium. Here first words: "We made it, hon. We made it to the Olympics. " The only call that I've received that was better, was when Irina called me to tell me that Avianna won Gold at the Pan american Games, winning the Olympic quota for Canada.

So, I found that Avianna was wearing her hat sideways, along with Johan Sauer, because they hated the hat but HAD to wear it. The side benefit was that it helped me find her in the crowd of 331(+/-) Canadian athletes.

That being seen, my evening was complete. (There was an on air interview afterwards with Avie which I missed, but that's life.) I decided to get home, which wasn't going to be easy. I'm living on the west end of Beijing and Tiananmen Square is east/central Beijing. Unfortunately, while China wants to portray itself as a world player, its paranoid about people acting freely. As such, they locked down the core. You couldn't get into the streets around Tiananmen Square. The subway stops around the square were all closed. Police and military were everywhere.

Since I couldn't walk up to the Tiananmen East subway stop, I decided to go east and north to Wanfuxing (sp??) stop. I walked east for a quite a distance until I found a street heading north. As I walked up there, it got weird. First, there were police and military about every 20-30 metres, 1 on each side of the street facing each other. Occasionally, there would be a plainsclothed "volunteer". Also, I should mention that there were the odd white van filled with military, who could quickly arrive where they might be needed.

So, I got almost all the way up to the subway line, via a long street with no cross roads, when a police van issuing commands started driving my way. everyone turned around and started walking south. Not me: I wanted to get outta here, so I kept northward. Finally, a military guy comes up and points south, when I was about 60 feet from my destination. He wanted me to walk 20 minutes south, and then go eastward again and circle back north, adding about 45 minutes to my walk. I didn't like that, so I played dumb (which I am very, very good at.)

I told him that I wanted to go to go north to the street. He smiled and pointed south. I said that I needed to get to the subway. He smiled, nodded and implied "Too bad..." Finally, I asked where the subway was. He pointed in the direction that I wanted to go. Immediately, I said "Ahhhh, xie xie!" (Ahhh, thanks!) and casually walked past him toward my goal. I was thining that this was either going to hurt or get me out of there. He said something and I kept walking. I guess that the overriding issue was not to offend westerners, so he let me past.

I then wandered into another bunch of police (not military this time) and they weren't happy to see me coming through their blockade. Again, natural stupidity saved my ass, as I asked where the subway stop was. The female officer told me were it was and I thanked her in Mandarin several times. Off I went. at this stage, even though I was out of the blockade, I ran a gauntlet of police who were stationed along the road every 10 feet. These guys weren't messing around.The only time that I saw anything like this, was in Athens as the riot police rolled out to hit a protest somewhere in the city. Even then, the Chinese presence made the Athenians look like amateurs.

Finally, I got on the almost empty subway and managed to get a seat (rare). The government has been discouraging participation in the games for the most part, restricting access or making it impossible to join in. The torch relay through the city was not open to common people. essentially, it was a coreographed event for the safe attendees. Lien wanted to see it but was denied. The opening was done similarly. As such, for the average Chinese, the Olympics is a TV-only event. I saw groups of people huddled around sets as I walked home. This left the streets virtually empty. Sort of a "Dawn of the Dead" creepiness filled the air.

I made it back in time to watch the Flame being lit. Talk about impressive. All I could think is that whatever Vancouver does, no matter how much it spends, it will look bad in comparson.

This morning, I woke late (yeah!) and Lien took me on a tour of the neighbourhood. We watched Tai Chi sword and staff in the park. As well, some guy was very proud to display his kungfu to me. Apparently, there aren't many westerners dropping by. It was too late and hot to join in, so maybe we'll be back in a few days after Avie's events to join in.

After the park, I went to the local market. Very cool. Food, clothing, services, everything was right there. Instead of purchasing breads and such as usual to bring home, we picked up some thousand year old egg and spoke with some of the shopkeepers, then headed off to a little restaurant. They made deep fried bread and wontons right there. We bought some and then headed indoors (they had A/C!!!!) for our meal. Again, I was a novelty. It was fun, filling and very tasty.

Eventually, we returned to the house, for me to work, and for Lien to meet up with some friends before her expedition to the range. Travelling within the city is screwy. Taxis and private cars aren't allowed near venues. Buslines are iffy and volunteers don't know enough. As such, it is a pain to get anywhere. (Another part of the plan to keep the masses away and watching the TV, which is double-plus good.) the ride to the range from the apartment is about 10 minutes. She's been gone almost three hours. Makes one question the Beijing Olympic motto: "We are ready!"

PS: Life improved dramatically 2 hours ago. I found the coffee in the apartment, that we left in April. Yes, its instant,but it is caffffffffffeinnnnnnnnnnnne.

The Big Bang Approaches

Today is the opening ceremonies of the Olympic Games and I waiting for it to get started. Its 11 am Beijing time and the ceremony starts at 8 pm. I've moved out of the village and have been staying at Lien's place in the west end of the city. Since I'm no longer accredited, I'll be watching the ceremony with the Canadian visitors at the British Columbia Pavillion, beside Tiananmen Square. The pavillion is where Canada Olympic House will be holding its activities during 'high security' times during the Olympics.

Canada Olympic House (COH) is where family and friends of Canadian athletes hang out. The COC runs this, as a way of taking care of people that the athletes might otherwise worry about. Now, the athletes can focus on performance and COH will feed and care for us. Its a good idea. Unfortunately, its main location is within the security zone, so only accredited people (not us) can get in. So, they acquired BC Pavillion (promoting BC and the 2010 Winter Olympics) for the night. Light dinner and refreshments will be made available, so we're set. Well, I'm taken care of.

The rest of the family will be watching the event at my aunts place. This way, they get to watch it in Chinese on CCTV and I get to listen to the show in English. Its easier for everyone and I get to switch off and be my anti-social self for a few hours. Yes, my iPod is charged.

Yesterday, while returning from an epic journey to get accreditation at COH, we were intercepted by the property manager. Someone had reported that a foreigner (me????) was staying in the building. We were politely sent directly over to the Police Station to report my presence. Papers were filled out and reports filed. Eventually, we were allowed to leave but the called back 2-3 times for more details. They had a hard time with my current lack of accreditation. Fortunately, I had taken the precaution of getting a regular visa, so I didn't get escorted to he airport.

Will post more later. Gotta do some stuff.

Awaiting my Pumpkin Carriage

Yep, the clock is counting down. I have what is known as "split accreditation", so multiple coaches can share entry into the village and venues. Well, mine comes to an end tonight at midnight, just like Cinderella. Didn't the Flintstones cartoon do a "Cinderella-Fella" bit? Hmm, I'll have to google that later.

But, before I ride off to my mother-in-law's condo (life ain't that bad in Beijing), I'll have dinner with Secretary of Sport, Helena Guergis. (Okay, not just me, but the entire shooting team, plus who knows who else.)

Basically, Ms. Guergis is the government's lead on sport. She influences what sport in Canada "is". Like, does Canada support the City of Toronto's Pan American Games bid? Well, I'm sure that the City's stand on the demonization of target shooters and Olympians won't come up often. Probably only once, but for about an hour. Ms. Guergis has already publically questioned the City's stand while bidding for the Games. I'll communicate to her that a provincial boycott of the Games by the shooting sports is underway if Toronto is involved in the Games (actually any games) in any capacity. We'll deny the City bragging rights and prestige. This is the only way that law abiding Canadian shooters can get the message across to politicians with agendas.

Also, before I ride off into the sunset, Avie and I will be attending the Canadian flag raising ceremony in the Village. I'm pumped for this. Hell, I put on the right uniform and shaved. I actually look nice, if you can believe it.

I better go. I might be able to make another entry before I ride out. If not, it will be in the land of normalacy. It sounds sorta nice.

Much better, thanks

Well, things are better today. First off, thanks to those who sent some encouragement my way (you know who you are). Apparently, I get whiney when I am jetlagged.

Its a bit of a grind here. The weather was iffy, but I'm managing the heat better than I had expected. Actually, Avie brings it up more than I do. Before dropping some weight, hot days knocked the hell out of me. Now, its "just hot" and I carry on with my business.

I'm realising that this place is a bit like high school. There are Olympians/athletes running for some sort of representative role with the IOC. Personally, I haven't focused on the issue, because I'm not eligible to vote as a coach. But, seeing the reps last night made me think of people running for student council. They line up in front of the cafeteria and smile, trying to engage people coming in or out. One fellow, a martial artist from Korea, has impressed me by standing out there since the first day we arrived. In the heat, in his martial arts gi (outfit), pressing hands and saying hi. He is trying hard, and apparently was noticed by the other candidates. Last night, EVERYBODY was out there, doing the same thing. Unfortunately, like student council elections, its coming off as style without substance. They should talk with Barack and learn how to communicate about issues.

Training went well yesterday. Still there are some isues to deal with. I spoke with Roger daniels from Trinidad and this is his second Olympics. He comented that he was more focused this time. In Athens, he felt distracted with idea of being at the Olympics. It doesn't get any bigger and that does play on your mind. Well, this is his second run and that distraction is behind him. The experience was good to hear and Avie and I both took it to heart. Yes, its big but its still just a shooting match.

My message to Avie has been pretty straightforward: you're prepared to perform. You've trained hard and put in many, many hours. This Olympics isn't about winning, but about performing to the best of your abilities. Perform and let the bean counters decide the standings afterwards.

Simply put, we are both here to learn and then apply that information for London 2012. I have learned and hope that I can put that knowledge to good use. This is Avie's fourth major games (2 Pan Ams, 1 Common Wealth, plus now the Olympics) and each experience brings new knowledge.

I'll probably dig myelf in deeper with the powers that be, but as a coach, I have to be pushier. Yes, that got me in trouble before, but the system doesn't support the meek. I need to identify all possible resources and then push them to deliver. We see and hear of programs at the Village, but we never heard of them at home. They aren't of much use here, while we're getting ready to perform. We'll see what is available and figure out how we can squeeze the system for more. If services cannot be communicated and delivered, then maybe I can inquire about them and acquire them for my athletes.

Okay: its 6:30 am (awoke at 4:54 am to my roommate reading text messages, after fighting to fall asleep witth his snoring) and I need to prep for breakfast and a day at the range. I also have a radio interview with an English-language Chinese radio station, that is broadcast around th world. Think of the Chinese version of "Voice of America". Should be different. Here's hoping that I don't say something that gets me removed from China.

The promise doesn't quite match the reality

Things are not quite what one would hope here. The promise doesn't quite match the reality. We have internet cafes and wireless hotspots but:

• I've been trying to get my email (via targetshooting.ca) and that isn't accessible.
• I've been trying to update my Facebook (via a browser) and that isn't accessible (intermittent?)

Its a bit of a drag, to say the least. Hopefully, it will improve over time.

Also, the weather didn't hold out. The smog is back and visibility is about 1-2 km. When you enter the 50 metre range (part indoor, part outdoor), the smog is evident. Even in the short 25 metre range, you can see the "air". Personally, while most people are following the odd/even rules for cars, it doesn't seem to be working. Its as bad or worse than anything that we saw in April, without the traffic restrictions. So far, it doesn't appear to be affecting the shooting athletes, but it is still several days out.

Most "big name" countries are here. I've seen Nestruev (Russia), Tirode and Dumoulin (France), Sekaric (Bosnia/Herzg.), Grozdeva (Bul.), Dorjsuren (Germany), to name just a few. I've seen Katy Emmons (Czech.), but no Matt Emmons (USA) or any other Americans. I had heard that the USA team was holding a pre-Olympic training camp in South Korea. That should allow them to acclimatise from the jet lag.

Personally, I'm having a tough time with waking up. I'm juggling some work issues (own damn fault) and working to clear them through. As such, I'm not sleeping well and when I do fall asleep, nothing wakes me up. I'm sleeping through alarms, phone calls, etc. Part of the problem is that I have a roommate (great guy, Eoin white) with a snoring problem. Actually, he doesn't have a problem snoring: he does it quite well. So, I wear my shooting earplugs to block it out. It does, as well as blocking out everything else. As such, I've missed two team dinners and barely got out on time for the bus in the morning.

I went to team services to see if they could help. Their help... wasn't. They have no alarm clocks. They went to show me how to use the alarm clock on the phone handed out, but, I didn't rate one of these. Yes, there is a hierarchy at the Games, and as a partially accredited coach, I am way down the list. The moral of this story, as with everything in our sport, is simple: total self-reliance. While in the Village, I should have assumed no alarms clocks (turned out to be the case) and should have brought two (the one I did bring is insufficient). I should have also prepped myself to make sure that I had real backup. (Because you have staff doesn't mean that you have the use of the staff.)

To be honest, and this will make me seem like a jerk, I am looking forward to leaving the Village. Yes, its very nice and the staff do their best to help. But, shooting is not a priority for the Canadian staff. We have one athlete who is considered a medal contender (Susan Nattrass), according to the guy from "Road to Excellence". As such, they don't talk to anyone else before the Games.

We're finding that there are some problems, but without access to the sport medicine specialists, we arrive to the Olympics with the problems. IF we had access beforehand, we could have addressed the issues months ago and arrived stronger. Being here, highlights what little regard is held for this sport by our NOC. So, the sooner that I am out, the sooner that I can plan for the next quadrennial, again focusing on how to make the most with whatever we can patch together.

This has been a good learning experience. There is a different mindset to preparing for the Olympics. The stakes seem higher.

Well, the lights have been turned off in the internet cafe and I've been told that they are closing. If I can find a hotspot that works, I'll come back online shortly.