Olympics - Is it possible ?

Question

Now i know that we've all been inspired by the Beijing 2008 olympics, but Its always been a fantasy of mine to sprint in one of the next coming olympics. I think London 2012 is a bit to early in my situation however.

Im 16 years of age, and am a very fast sprinter, and i always have been. I didn't really think it would get me anywhere though, as my parents encourage academic performance over sport. However now i've got my good batch of GCSE results, and moving on A-Levels, seeing those athletes run on the t.v makes me want to be a part even more.

I've taken part in the 100m god knows how many times in my school, running against the 10 fastest qualifiers out of 1800 pupils, and have come in second and third.

Im not a running expert, but if you think its possible, with intense training and health and fitness exercises, do yo uthink it would be possible for me, in a few years time to be running for Great Britain?

The motivation comes from Christian Malcolm, who lives on my doorstep, and it's just crazy how one week hes in the local shop, and the next hes running in Beijing.

Anyway, sensible thoughts and feelings please, does anyone know what i would have to do, to increase my chances of becoming an olympic athlete?

Answer 1

You best bet is to figure out ONE sport (rowing OR running OR swimming) based on your physique (remember, your body will change a lot over the next 4 years, so, for example, you may not want to look at running as your sport if your physique is likely to end up being good for weightlifting).

Don't forget to consider sports you may not have much experience in. For example, you may have a very good physique for cycling even though you have not really done it competitively!

N.B. You HAVE to have a passion for your sport. You will be doing it all day every day and it will cause you more pain and heartache than you can imagine, so you better love it enough to get you through these rough times to the good times!

Next practise, practise, practise! Find a good club, with a GREAT coach and kiss your social life goodbye for 4 years. Sport at this level is all about sacrifice. It is not just the endless hours of training, it is also about the free time between training when you rest instead of partying, when you read up on technique/competition instead of going to the movies, when you travel to and from competitions instead of going camping.

Most people want to do this as a part time gig but the ONLY way to get there is if you treat it as a fulltime job AND you are lucky enough to be genetically blessed! That is why we all admire these athletes, they are the very best of the very few!

Good luck and give me a wave from the Gold Medal podium in 2012!

Answer 2

You sound pretty fast. Whats ur 100m time?

Answer 3

You need to talk to you parents.

They may think academic success is more important, but you have to make it clear to them that this is your dream and you are willing to work had for it.

If they are willing to support you, then you are well on your way. If not, then it will be very hard for you to succeed.

You need to invest practically all your time into training if you want to perform at an Olympic level. That means eating healthily - you will need to talk to a doctor or nutririonist - and running every day. Run to and from school, sprint every chance you get. Join a gym.

You need to focus completely on this if you really want to succeed.

Oh, and you have to thank me when you're getting your gold medal.

Answer 4

you are delusional.   What kind of organized track meets are you running?  Sounds like you are not even the fastest in your school. why would you post race results and not times?  If you were that fast you would have been already recruited by an elite college track and field program.