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to school. School started at 8.00 a.m., which gave us a good 15 minutes to eat
breakfast.
At the end of the school day, after about an hour of studying or eating or just
relaxing, it was back in the car for another 45-minute drive. This time, we were to be
at the pool at 4.00 p.m. for a practice that would last 3 hours. We would usually
arrive home at around 8.30 p.m. in time for dinner a little homework and a light sleep.
After doing that for a year, I switched to a team closer to home. It seemed like
quite a luxury to only have to drive 15 minutes to training.
Finally, last May, after more than 40 million meters and upwards of
45 thousand hours in the pool my Olympic dream became a reality. It was in the
Olympic Pool built decades ago in Rome that I qualified for the Sydney Olympic
Games. In fact, when I touched the wall, I failed to realise I had made the
standard. The days that followed were difficult. I had only qualified in one event
and they questioned whether or not I should go. Many questions were raised,
including the fact that I trained in Hawaii.
After a week and a half of waiting, I got a phone call from my father in Hong
Kong. I can still remember the feeling of excitement I felt after he told me that
I would indeed be competing at the Olympic Games in Sydney.
I arrived in Sydney 4 days before the Games started, after being in Brisbane for
a training camp. I couldn't believe that I was finally there. The atmosphere
couldn't have been better. There I was, among the best athletes in the world.
Unfortunately, I had to make the decision not to participate in the opening
ceremonies, as my race was the next day. Once again, I had to make a sacrifice in
the name of swimming. But, I knew what I was there for, and nothing would take
priority over it, even the monumental event of the Opening Ceremonies.
The night before my race was a long one. My brother, who was my roommate,
had to calm me down quite a bit. The morning finally came, and after a decent
nights rest, I was ready.
One of the most nerve racking parts of the entire swim was the moments
just before. All the swimmers in the event had to go to the ready room where
everybody would wait for their heat. Now imagine that ... being in the room with
world champions, world record holders, Olympic champions, and then there
was me.
My heat was called. So we marched down the tunnel to the pool and out
onto the pool deck. There waited 17,000 spectators and hundreds of cameras
watching the eight people on deck. At that moment, I think my knees began to
shake, and the single thought that ran through my mind was, "Just make it to your
lane without tripping." Luckily, I did.
We have spoken of national pride, and a huge sense of nationalism raced
through my blood as the announcer spoke my name and country.
I ended up fourth in my heat, improving my time by 8 hundredths of a second.
My coaches congratulated me, as well as my brother and family. But somehow,
I was not satisfied. This is what has helped me make the decision to train for Athens.
That day, the first day of swimming competition, 4 world records were broken.
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