London Olympics 2012 - Sarah Storey OBE blog
Sarah Storey OBE is Great Britain’s most decorated, currently competing, female Paralympian. This summer she’s staying at Club La Santa as she prepares for the London 2012 Olympics and this is her blog.
Read Part One
Read Part Two
Read Part Three
Read Part Four
Read Commonwealth Games Blog
Sarah has amassed 69 World records across her 19 year international career. Starting out life as a swimmer at the age of 14 in 1992 in Barcelona, Sarah has since competed in a further 3 Paralympics as a swimmer [1996, 2000, 2004] and then made her cycling debut at the Paralympics in Beijing in 2008.
Winning 5 gold, 8 silver and 3 bronze as a swimmer, Sarah spent much of 2005 out of the water with a series of chronic ear infections and it was during this time she discovered she had a talent on the bike.
Winning 2 gold medals in Beijing in 2008 and since winning 2 able-bodied National Individual Pursuit titles, Sarah has recently signed with Horizon Fitness Racing Team, to further establish a career on the road. Now seen as once Great Britain’s most versatile riders, Sarah is hoping to gain selection to both the Olympic and Paralympic Games in London in 2012.
After spending many weeks at Club La Santa as a swimmer, and enjoying the facilities on site, Sarah first came to the island with her bike in February 2010. Impressed by the roads and the challenge of the wind as well as the opportunities on site for sports massage and other recreation activities, Club La Santa have now agreed a sponsorship with Sarah to assist with her training towards this double selection ambition in 2012.
Read Part One
Read Part Two
Read Part Three
Read Part Four
Read Commonwealth Games Blog
Commonwealth Games Blog
Arriving in Delhi was very exciting, not least because on approach to landing, the view from the plane window through the heat haze showed a sprawling city with many impressive looking buildings but although I tried to crane my neck I couldn’t see any of the much talked about venues or our accommodation at the Commonwealth Village.
Having never visited India before I was curious to sit by the bus window and watch the sights of another huge city pass me by as we were whisked through the streets to the Athlete’s Village. The drill of any Games is very much the same and the journey from the airport is always a quiet one as each person in the team takes in the sights of the city.
I always love that part of the trip, after a long flight when you are really itching to get there and unpack it’s almost like the best is saved to last and you see the host city from the athlete bubble. It’s also the same on any journey to the venues, a great vantage point for people watching and checking out the day to day life of another huge city on which so many foreign nationals have descended. I never expected to have the time to go out and about in the city of Delhi, so I soaked up the outside world as best I could from the bus.
Arriving in Delhi we had the same “Games Lane” route to the Village, with the traffic virtually at a standstill around us, we athletes were cleverly guided through the maze of streets and three lane carriageways, with a police escort and many other security personnel lining the streets we travelled. With big banners and adverts of the Games Mascot, not to mention the many volunteers that had been at the airport to welcome us, I had a good vibe about our stay and was excited to explore the much talked about Village.
The construction of any Games Village is similar. Athletes and the staff are housed in apartments or houses all of which have been built to be rented or sold afterwards. Occasionally there is an existing campus available for the Village, as was the case in Manchester 2002, but in general the Village is a new build, built to blend in so that it can be used after the Games.
In Barcelona 1992 the Village was by the Olympic Port, its food hall was not the usual huge marquee but a tall building and now that area is residential the food hall building has been turned into a shopping mall and underground supermarket.
In 1996 the Village was built as an extension of the University of Atlanta and after the Games was to house students. In Sydney a completely new housing estate was built with the intention of converting the buildings into family homes after the Games. As such the house I was in didn’t have a kitchen and I even slept in what would have ended up as the garage. This approach also meant there wasn’t enough room for everyone, so some unlucky people lived in mobile homes that were placed outside the main houses.
Manchester’s Commonwealth Games hosted the athletes in the University accommodation to the south of the city centre in Fallowfield. A huge campus was taken over from high rise flats to the older more traditional style rooms which the English team had. These were bigger bedrooms, with a large bathroom down the end of each corridor. With accreditation always allowing free access to local transport, being a swimmer at those Commonwealth Games, meant we could use the public buses to get up and down the main road to the pool. It was perfect!
By Athens in 2004, we were back in purpose built accommodation in a superb village and like Delhi there were several training venues at the Village including a 50m swimming pool and archery field.
Like Athens, Beijing was another purpose built village and again with all the modern conveniences of a leisure pool, state of the art gym and vast array of shops in the International zone.
In much the same way the Delhi organisers built the village specifically for the Games and the location meant the apartments were built as prime location residences to be sold after the Games. With a high speed rail link just a few minutes walk from the village, future residents of these apartments will be able to access the business and central districts of Delhi much quicker than in other areas. The Delhi Village also went one better than any other Games, providing en-suite bedrooms to all residents as well as a guest toilet off the main living area. This meant in the apartment I was staying, we had 5 bedrooms and 6 bathrooms. Complete luxury when there are up to 10 girls staying together!
Arriving in the heat of the day made me appreciate the time we would have to acclimatise, although after a couple of rollers sessions outside, I was soon used to the 35-40 degree day time temperatures and quite enjoyed not having my usual cold feet!
By the second day I was ready to hit the track and arrived to find a brand new velodrome with all the additional facilities such as athlete lounge, treatment rooms and changing areas you would expect of a world class venue. Having no prior knowledge of weather patterns in Delhi it was interesting to find we were experiencing constantly low pressure, around 980-985mb and I hoped that with an adjustment of the track’s air conditioning we could enjoy the heat from outside and a potentially superfast track.
By race day I’d experienced all the Village had to offer, with a vast array of tasty food in the food hall, a string of shops in the International Zone, the cool Residence Centre for internet and the endless supply of sport on the “live feed” channels of the apartment’s television. After hitting the track up until competition started on Tuesday 5th October, I was then confined to barracks and told to rest up ready for action on Friday 8th. It’s that sort of training that no one ever warns you about and that over the course of the last 7 Games, I have managed to perfect in a way that doesn’t cause me to go too stir crazy!
Sitting with your feet up for two or three days straight, no unnecessary walking, no socialising in other apartments, nothing more strenuous than riding to the food hall 3 times a day and doing a light rollers session.
That is the part that doesn’t appear on the side of the tin!
Athlete; must be capable of tolerating extreme pain, of competing even when their body wants to sleep, of training until they think they’ll fall over and knowing how much to eat and sleep.
Nowhere does it say, Athlete; must be able to do all of the above and must also be able to tolerate the extreme boredom of resting up before a major Championships!
It got to the point where my flatmates were coming back from racing and saying, “have you actually moved from that chair?!!”
To which I would reply, “of course, I went to get my lunch!”
I sat in my chair watching all of the cycling and most of the swimming. I based my lunch time around not missing any finals, and I knew the TV channel numbers I would need to flick sports off by heart! I watched in amazement at the speed of the fastest qualifier in the men’s individual pursuit and hoped to emulate that. I saw the drama in the Keirin and watched excited as team mates picked up their medals. I was part of the action, but I was still in my chair!
I did a few interviews just after we arrived and was asked questions about whether it was different being part of an able-bodied team and whether it would be harder or easier being an athlete as a result of that. I’d not really thought of the event as any different to going away with my Paracycling or Paraswiming team mates, it didn’t feel too different, just pulling on the national kit and packing for another competition. The only differences I could find were related directly to my circumstances. I wasn’t standing in the Village as any kind of favourite. Looking around and people watching in the Food Hall, gave me the chance to spot any number of athletes I recognised, and who I knew would be regarded as a favourite. For me, it was probably only the 3rd time in my career when I wouldn’t be regarded as a favourite at a major Championships.
I wasn’t at the top of the rankings in the Commonwealth and I’d just been beaten at the British Championships by another rider who I knew I’d face in Delhi. I stood there as a World Record Holder and as a Paralympic and World Champion, but none of that changed my approach or meant I was more likely to be singled out. I was just another rider, like any other, who was also hoping to get under their personal best and try and get on the podium if I could.
My ambitions for the Games were also different. I would have loved to think I could win, but realistically I knew the challenge would be to get a second ride. There could be no tactics. I couldn’t expect to be last off in qualification and therefore know what time would qualify me for the final. I was out there to do exactly the opposite of what I have ever done in the last few years. My aim was the ride the Qualification round like a final and see if that was enough to get through to the medal rides. There was no thinking or planning for a second ride, as far as I was concerned my preparation was for one 3,000m ride and anything after that would be a bonus.
In the event I rode against a young New Zealand rider, who had I beaten I would have been in the bronze medal ride. I didn’t win our contest, I clocked the same time as I did at the British Nationals and was placed 6th. I couldn’t have gone any faster on that day, so had no regrets. I just wasn’t good enough and hadn’t had the same perfect preparation as I’d had prior to the Paracycling World Track Championships when I’d done my personal best last year.
I’d gone out to leave nothing in the tank and barely had the energy to switch bikes for the cool down. It was a strange one really, I felt I’d tried harder than I’d done to go my personal best [5 seconds quicker, last November] and the power data from the bike this time, showed I was 35 watts higher on average for the ride. Considering I am lower at the front and from pictures certainly look more aero than I did last November, I would have expected a 35 watt increase to have been enough to do a quicker time, especially with the decrease in overall drag.
With the “numbers” looking so positive and the impact of the lessons I’ve learned from the experience allowing me to again move onwards and upwards as an athlete I feel incredibly humbled to have had the opportunity out in India. It’s always good to get your “head kicked in” every now and then, preferably not with the attention of the country’s media on you or with the added tag of being the first endurance para-athlete to compete for an able-bodied English team, but I am so glad I was there. Not only did coming 6th remind me of how grateful I am to have made the podium on so many other occasions in the past, but it also confirmed to me I am right to be so motivated to ride a sub 3 minutes 30 for the 3,000m, it’s another landmark I just HAVE to reach! :)
A big thanks to all the people who made the trip possible and of course to my family and friends for their constant support and encouragement. Until next time, Sarah x
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Blog Part Four
Congratulations from Club La Santa to Sarah Storey! She’s just won the World Championship Road Race at Baie-Comeau in Canada.
C5 Women’s Road Race – 57 Km
Sarah Storey was competing in the C5 womens road race with 5 laps of the tough circuit to complete. After the surprise 2nd place the Polish rider Anna Harkowska achieved in the time trial, Storey new almost certainly her biggest challenge would come from the Pole and the race did not dissappoint!
As the riders pulled away from the start on a glorious day in Baie-Comeau, Harkowska attacked immediately, with all the riders in the group staying together until the first major climb. Once upon the main climb Storey then upped the pace to slim down the front group, with only Harkowska and the two Americans Neimanas and Crowley able to stay with Storey. The climb saw Storey pile on pressure each lap, until she only had Harkowska for company. Once the final lap had started Storey decided to attack Harkowska again on the main climb, but the Polish rider managed, some how! to stay with Storey after the fierce attacks. Once heading towards the finish, Storey then attacked again in the final few kilometres, but was bought back by Harkowska, then with 500metres to go launched her sprint, gapping the Polish rider straight away and as she rode down the finishing straight there was a gap between the 2 riders for the first time in the race.
Storey crossed the line to become World Road Champion!
This was a truly fantastic race to watch and certainly gave the large lively crowd great entertainment in the town of Baie-Comeau. The finish area had a huge number of spectators, which was great to see at a Paracycling event. Storey adds this Road Race Gold to the Time trial Gold to become double World Champion!
British Cycling spoke to Sarah after her fine ride:
“That was a great race to ride, as riders were attacking from the start, making it an aggressive race. At the start Anna (Harkowska) attacked and that set the tone for the race with action throughout. With it being a hard race it played into my hands, as I new I had the perfect preparation for the event, racing some pretty hard races with my team Horizon Fitness this year. As we went over the main climb each lap, I tried to push the pace and open some gaps between riders. Which went down to 4 riders to start with, then I distanced the 2 riders from USA, going into the last lap, I was determined to try and put some time between myself and Anna. She hung on to my back wheel just! and then I attacked with 3 kilometres to go, but thought it was a bit early and eased back, then sprinted away from her at 500metres to go. Once I got in the finish straight I new the World Title was mine! Its brilliant to retain the title I won last year and this now brings my tally to 14 World titles in Swimming and cycling and number 8 in cycling!”
Result
1. Sarah STOREY (GBR)
2. Anna HARKOWSKA (POL)
3. Kelly CROWLEY (USA)
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Blog Part Three
C5 Women’s Time Trial – 22.8Km
Sarah Storey was first up for Great Britain on a very pleasant morning in Baie-Comeau. The women faced a tough two laps of the time trial course which included a challenging climb every lap, plus a gradual climb from the start area. Storey was the last rider off in the new C5 womens class, where she had previously been World Champion in the LC1 womens class in 2009, so she had all of the riders in her class ahead of her with the BC coaching staff setup on the course to give her time checks throughout.
As Storey rolled down the ramp she new she would be chasing her 13th World Title in Swimming and Cycling, quite remarkable! At the first time check Storey was 5 seconds down on the rapidly improving Harkowska from Poland, so the race was well and truly on for Storey. As she reached the half way mark the gap had been overturned and she was 11seconds up on Harkowska, with the Polish rider tiring as the race went into the final lap. By this point Storey was extending her lead and catching riders in front of her too and as she raced past the final time check, she was leading by a minute and finishing with an excellent time of 33mins and 36secs. Then announced over the public address Storey had won the World Title for the time trial.
British Cycling spoke to Sarah after her fine ride:
“I’m really pleased to have won the Time Trial at the Paracycling Worlds for the second year running. I wanted to pace my ride really well and finish strong. The girls in my class are improving all the time and when Harkowska was 5 seconds up at the first time check I didn’t panic and rode at my pace. It was a really good course, with a good section of climbs, with the downhill today slightly tougher with the headwind. The preparation I’ve had this year has been fantastic with my Team Horizon Fitness and am looking forward to riding in the rainbow jersey for another year!”
Result
1. Sarah STOREY (GBR) 33Mins 36secs
2. Anna HARKOWSKA (POL) 34Mins 38secs
3. Greta NEIMANAS (USA) 35Mins 56secs
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Blog Part Two
After a very welcome rest day, relaxing in the fabulous pool bar watching the Tour de France and also paying another visit to the Wellness Centre for a well needed sports massage, it was time to get back to the pedalling.
The second block of training followed a similar pattern to the first few days and my effort sessions were a set of four 3km hill efforts out of La Santa village to Tinajo and then a set of 8 lead out sprints with my World Champion Sprinter husband, Barney, who was casting a professional eye over my speed work and acceleration work. The hill efforts were all done using the biggest gear I could manage and the stepped climb meant I had the chance to dip in and out of my max minute power and then back to a power above my threshold to try and recover. Doing one effort every 12-15 minutes was gut busting, but after a recovery ride in the afternoon my legs felt better for the intensity.
Accelerations are one of my weaknesses compared to other riders so it was great to work with Barney and sprint off his wheel for our imaginary finish line. We used the road away from the roundabout just outside the track entrance to Club La Santa and we used the drop in the road to gradually pick up speed before the actual lead out started on the false flat. After 400 metres or so, the speed had reached a point where I had to really work out of the saddle to get the peak power up and the speed increased in order to pass Barney and try not to fade before I crossed our finish line. It was another tough session to get under my belt but after the long hours in the saddle during the End to End it was noticeable how well I was recovering between these efforts and also the hill efforts.
I also had the chance to go for some more four hour rides during which I saw many beautiful views, could admire the colourful flowers that flanked the road in places as well as working hard to maintain speed and form in the cross winds. The first was a trip back out to Tabayesco for the climb from the east coast, which is a popular ascent with all riders who come to island to test their legs into the head wind up the 10km of climbing. I went up at about 90% of maximum and got to the top in just over 30 minutes although sadly there was rather thick fog at the top and so I couldn’t see anything until I came further down the other side towards Teguise.
My other long ride was out to El Golfo again and with a strong tail wind and great surface down to Uga I spent around 5km at speeds of over 65km/h! On reaching the El Golfo road I did a 15 minute time trial effort at normal 10 mile time trial pace and then continued to battle the headwind as I went back over the Fire Mountains and then unlike my first ride on the island when I did the route to El Golfo, on this ride I finished with an extra hour back around to Famara beach where the waves were crashing on the beach the surfers were having a great time! The climb back up towards Soo was quick with a strong tailwind and by the time I arrived in the Pool Bar for another big sandwich I was completely spent from the strong northerly wind I’d battled throughout the ride.
Watching Mark Cavendish win his first stage of this year’s Tour de France was an inspiring way to recover whilst enjoying the warm breeze and friendly chat from the other Club La Santa residents who were watching the cycling too. Another great part to the Club La Santa resort is the atmosphere of like-minded sports fans and whether it’s having dinner at one of the restaurants or having some chill out time by the pool, there are always people who come to chat about the action of day’s stage and ask about the rider’s we know.
After the business end of the cycling training had been done there was an opportunity for me to test the water again in the Olympic size swimming pool and see whether I could still manage all the strokes! Armed with a float and some flippers [just in case!] I went for a short paddle in the pool that had been the location for my first outdoor training camp. Five years ago when I was still a full-time swimmer I was able to glide through the water with relative ease and complete 100 metres freestyle in just over 60 seconds. Although I still have the technique to swim without splash, my speed has disappeared and my arms are so weak I had to stop after about 1000 metres! Of course the pool at Club La Santa is one of the biggest reasons for many tri-athletes and swimmers to attend with their families for training and holidays. Whilst there we met a young swimmer from the UK hoping to make the team for Wales at the Commonwealth Games this year, not to mention several tri-athletes who had recently completed Ironman races in Europe.
All too soon we were packing our bags and after a pre-breakfast ride we checked out and said a “good bye for now” as we hope to return to the island very soon and of course to Club La Santa which really does feel like a home from home!
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Blog Part One
More than 17 years after my first trip to Club La Santa, I was back on the island with Barney for our first training camp as a Club La Santa sponsored athlete. Back in 1992 my first training camp at Club La Santa had been as a swimmer and the camp was the final preparation camp for the Paralympics that would be held three months later. Since many of us had never trained, let alone competed in an outdoor pool, the ever moving clouds above the Club La Santa pool became a quick learning curve on how to ignore them whilst swimming backstroke! So much has changed since then, not with Club La Santa though, that is still one of the world’s greatest training venues.
The changes have been in the status of me as a Paralympian and the way the logistics of things now operate. Back in 1992 my parents had paid for the training camp as there had been no central funding provided to pay for what was deemed in those days to be a real luxury. It’s hard to imagine now that we’d be told we couldn’t have a preparation camp!
Not only did they fund the camp for me but they also came with me, as did my brother and sister and whilst I was hard at training, they were having a whitsun half term holiday! Perhaps even more strangely than that, they’d had to book and pay for the camp six months before I’d find out whether I’d been selected for the team! If you were unlucky enough not to make the team then there were no refunds, you simply had a holiday while your team mates trained!
Arriving at Club La Santa for this trip, I’d come straight off the back of a 9th place at the British National Road Race Championships, my highest place at that event. I was also arriving with over 1000 miles in my legs from taking part in the Deloitte Ride Across Britain, which had finished just seven days earlier. I was without doubt in need of some R+R and specific speed and strength training that I knew training on Lanzarote would give me.
Being able to stay at Club La Santa just makes the whole training routine far easier and as we were also staying half board, there was no end of fantastic food to be served each night in the Atlantico restaurant, perfect for athletes in training.
My first port of call on arrival at Club La Santa was the Wellness Centre. I needed to start the recovery process from what had been a tough few weeks in June and be ready for hard training again within a couple of days of arrival. After a 50 minute sports massage I was feeling relaxed and ready to tackle the next phase of my training plan for the trip.
Coming off the back of such big mileage during the Deloitte Ride Across Britain and also after a very exposed ride at the nationals, it was clear my plan to add some speed work into the training during the camp at Club La Santa was well advised. My camp would be split into two parts. A short block of three days then a rest day followed by four days then an easy day before travelling home. Having extra rest in the first week would be essential if I was going to be successful in allowing my body to adapt after the big mileage of the two weeks before, yet I needed to add in some higher intensity efforts to encourage my muscles to produce more power.
I started with a three hour, 90km ride through Soo to Famara and then followed the road to Uga then Yaiza before doing a lap of El Golfo and then returning through the Fire Moutains. This was a perfect leg opener and it was great to be back in the saddle and exploring the island.
Having spent so much time at Club La Santa as a swimmer, I’d not previously got to explore the island properly and other than a trip to Teguise market, I’d stayed at the resort and done the successful formula of eat, sleep and train! Since my first trip to Club La Santa as a cyclist, only in February of 2010, I’ve thoroughly enjoyed the roads of the island and the various backdrops depending where you ride.
El Golfo is a favourite of mine for the contrasting scenery, as the Atlantic waves crash against the rugged shoreline they fling their spray across the road and onto the vast expanse of volcanic land. Black volcanic rock extends across several kilometres towards the distinctive peaks of volcanoes in the background. It’s an amazing spot to ride around and so close to another fascinating road through the Fire Mountains. Riding back north the road steadily climbs and you always know where you are when the camels appear on the left! What looks like hundreds of camels all waiting to take people up the Timanfaya volcano! Wherever you are on the island, the roads are generally fantastic after a fairly recent revival of all the major routes. Smooth tarmac is generally the norm all over Lanzarote and it certainly makes a welcome change after the hideous potholes of mainland Europe and the UK.
My second day was a double session day, with a two hour ride containing sprint attack efforts in the morning and then an easy hour to aid recovery in the afternoon.
The roads within half an hour of Club La Santa are all ideal for various efforts and for these 20 second sprint attacks I chose the road from Soo to Tiagua through Munique. It’s a rolling stretch of road that gradually gains height the further it moves away from the coast and with a tail wind from Soo it made it ideal for my session. After a lap to warm up I went up and back and up again, to get my sixteen sprint attacks in and with Barney keeping a close eye on proceedings, he made sure the effectiveness of the efforts didn’t wane.
The third session of the block was a long steady, tempo ride to Mirador del Rio and back. In total only just over 105km in the four hours I had planned. The slower speed was entirely due to the strong northerly wind, gusting at well over 40mph and pegging back the speed due to the severity of the gusts both as a headwind and also as a tricky crosswind. The thing about Lanzarote that makes it so good, is that the wind is always there working as your friend. That extra resistance from the head wind or that extra push when it’s behind you making you feel great, whatever the direction it’s making you stronger and that can only be a good thing.
My ride up to Mirador del Rio was a slow one thanks to not only the head wind but also the alternating cross winds down the tricky descent off Tabayesco. Here the road wound it’s way down to Haria and the valley of the 1000 palms. The battle was well worth the effort though and the views from the top of the island were, as ever, spectacular. I was also rewarded for my efforts into the headwind, with a largely fast descent and mainly a tailwind back along the main road towards Arrecife. I’d pondered climbing Tabayesco again from the east coast side, but decided the descent into Teguise would be tricky and so pressed on south. Passing the cactus garden and then turning right to head back to Teguise, La Florida, La Veguetta and then down the hill to La Santa. Hopefully the wind will drop in the final few days and I can get a quick descent at some point!
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Sarah wins first race of the season (British Cycling)
Sarah’s team – Horizon Cycling
The Cheshire Classic (British Cycling)
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26th May 2010
Sarah Storey Making Waves with Horizon Fitness. Interview with Sarah for Bike-Pure website.
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26th May 2010
Sarah Storey’s National 10 mile time trial championships.
As Britain sweltered in 30 degrees centigrade and the comedy sunburnt people sat outside cafes and public houses, it was for the time-triallists of the UK to figure out their cooling strategy for the National 10 mile Time Trial Championships!
Sarah Storey’s blog on Bike Radar
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