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Happy Holidays and All the Best for 2001 From Sharon Donnelly!

I can't believe that the big Millennium Year is coming to an end! It just flew by; without a computer glitch or telephone snag to be seen! So much for the scare of the world crashing from the big BUG! Anyways, it was an incredible year for Dave (my husband) and I. Of course, I am referring to the Olympic Games, my lifetime dream and goal. Some of you know how my race unfolded in Sydney and others do not, so I will fill you in on that and some of my most memorable experiences of not only the Olympic Games but other events of the year. I hope you enjoy the following 'long-winded' tale of my millennium year!

Training Camp: Jan-May
It started with a flight to Australia on Jan 5th for my big block of training base for the last year in my quadrennial Olympic program. I decided to join a group that was formed in the Gold Coast mainly of Canadians and coached by Lance Watson. This group of about 15 included short course triathletes such as Simon Whitfield, long course triathletes such as Lisa Bentley and Jamie Cleveland and myself. I spent 4 months of long, tough training but with a lot of fun mixed in. The average day started at 4:45am with a 1.5-2hr swim workout, then home for food a rest then more food and onto a bike for 2-3 hours, more food and then emails followed up by a run workout then fall into bed by 8:30pm. It was eat, train, sleep continuously, but we had a positive, fun group, and with Olympics looming around the corner, there was never a problem with motivation or boredom.
During this 4-month period, I competed in a number of World Cups, with my best being a 4th place in Hawaii, plus a fun weeklong team tour around Aust ralia. With three members to a team (I had Simon Whitfield, Kelly Guest) and there were 5 teams (2 Aussie, Japan, New Zealand and Canada) we competed in 5 races in 7 days in Rockhampton, Townsville and Sydney. They were various short, fast relay type formats and at the end of the tour, our team had come a respectable 3rd place!
It was a very productive 4-month training period where I brought my running to a new level. Dave was also able to come and visit for a two-week period and brought his bike to join us on some of the beautiful long rides in the Hinterland of Queensland. He also came to the World Cup in Hawaii where we stayed at the beautiful Hilton Waikoloa; it was like a honeymoon!

Summer Phase: May - Aug
I spent the three summer months at home in Kingston. At times I wondered if it was really summer but rather monsoon season! But it didn't affect my training in any way and I enjoyed the time at home away from a large group for a short period of time. I had a few niggling injuries during this time as I was trying to get my running to a higher level. I had great treatment from Kingston the rapists in the way of physiotherapy, chiropractic and massage and was doing a ton of water running for my training. I also was following a comprehensive mental training program with Dr. Terry Orlick. I did not want to leave any stone unturned come the big day in September! I enjoyed this period of time, as I had more time with Dave and I also had one of my best World Cup performances ever at Toronto where I placed 2nd. All of my family and close friends were there to watch. I like pressure situations and I had a great race where I lead until the last 1km of the run when fellow Canadian Carol Montgomery caught and passed me. I had also beaten No.1 ranked Michellie Jones plus other top ranked triathletes, and it gave me a big confidence boost. The timing was ideal ! I knew my Olympic preparation was on track!

Pre-Olympic Phase: Aug & Sep
I spent the last three weeks of Aug at the National Training Centre in Victoria, BC. It was my first time to Vancouver Island and it certainly is everything that everyone says it is! It was absolutely beautiful and is an athlete's dream place! I stayed in the Esquimalt area where I felt right at home with the military housing and bases so close ! it made me feel like my home back on base in Kingston! The training was excellent and I had some amazing sessions with the group. My wetsuit swimming (swimming with a wetsuit for warmth would be the type of swim in Sydney since the water there would be about 15 degrees Celsius) was the best it had ever been and I felt great. I really began to feel the countdown to Olympics begin. Dave came and visited me in Victoria for a weekend and we realized that the next time we would meet would be two days before my race in Olympics!

Australia: September & Olympics
I flew to Australia on Sep 1st and I stayed north of Sydney in my regular training area of Gold Coast. I was familiar with it and it was away from the hype. Two other members of the triathlon team were there, Isabelle Baird and Simon (who came one week later). Training was great and I was swimming, running and cycling fast. THEN, less than 5 days before my race, I came down with a virus!! My worst fears were realized! My body was in perfect conditioning, which meant I didn't have a lot of fat reserves to combat evil viruses, but I was taking all the precautions I could in problems areas (ie: airplanes, etc). However, unbeknownst to me, Simon had caught a cold prior to leaving Victoria and it worsened on the plane. Two days after he arrived, I heard him coughing and talking rough. I asked him if he was sick and he confirmed that he was. I groaned and realized that I had not been taking any special precautions around him, as I had not known that he was ill! And we had all been eating in the same condo , where he was staying! I came down with it 5 days prior to my race. Simon, thankfully, ran the full course of it and was able to recover in time before his race, but I was into it full blown for race day! HOWEVER, I didn't let it affect my race focus or let it 'get to me.' Mainly because I refused to acknowledge it (as Simon was probably doing!) and I took every 'legal' herbal medication and vitamin that I could find (read between the lines: doesn't work!).A funny story was two nights before my race in my hotel (I stayed in a hotel because I wanted to avoid the boat ride that the organizers arranged for travel on race day ! I don't know about you, but my nerves make me feel sick on a good day, let alone on a boat before my Olympic race!!) Anyways, I was staying at one of the most secure hotels in the city; all of the heads of the NOC's (National Olympic Committees) were at mine. There were metal detectors and police with dogs in the lobby ! just like airport security: No pass, no entry! Well, I was having problems breathing and to ease them, I ran the hot shower (common practice to put steam in a room) and I was just about to shut it off after 10mins when the fire alarm went off!! Immediately Dave called the lobby staff and within minutes the hotel manager was up at the door (fire alarm is still ringing!), Dave said everything was okay. Not 3 minutes later, another knock and there are four firemen standing outside the door to check my room. Dave said "My wife was just me running the shower, she can't take any drugs that really work, so this is the only option, our apologies to the IOC staff in the hotel.! I could just imagine what the lobby must have looked like with everyone panicking etc! I had no problems sleeping that night ! the whole episode had cleared my mind of the race! Friday Sept 15 ! One day to go! I went into my quiet "don't bug me" mode. Tried to relax, and watched Chariots of Fire on my laptop. During dinner, I watched Opening Ceremonies on TV. It was quite the spectacle ! I was finally here!

Sept 16, 2000 ! RACE DAY
The atmosphere was electric and the number of spectators already lining the route 2 hours prior to race start was huge! I walked to the race area with Dave and I waved to my family in the stands as I prepared in the transition area. I had not drawn a good start position; I was on the far side of the pontoon, but that was okay I could deal with it. I remember them calling my name and I walked in front of the crowds thinking, "There is no place I would rather be right now." My swim was not very good as I spent the majority of the time fighting to get to the center where the better swimmers were and my coughing sometimes coincided with a big wave pounding into me! But I didn't panic and came out about 30 sec behind the first pack. I knew if my pack could work together, we could catch them. But as many of you know, we didn't get that chance ! there was a major crash only 10km into the cycle portion. I was traveling over 40km/hr when the two girls directly in front of me touched wheels and went down. I braked so hard that I put a hole through my tire! I had no room to maneuver around them so I knew I was going down! I remember thinking "No, not today!" I piled into the barrier and then onto the pavement. I bounced right back up, but I had broken my rear wheel on the barrier. My adrenalin was rushing and all I could think of was getting back into the race. I started to run with my bike to the next wheel stop (it is a looped course, 6x6.6km and there are 6 places to change wheels on the course. Also, if the front group of competitors laps you, then you are pulled off the course and unable to finish!) A race official was there and offered to take my wheel and cross the park to the other side where the wheel change was. So I waited what seemed an eternity for a spare ! other competitor s racing by, the girl who crashed in front of me was still crying and moaning in pain (she had broken her collarbone), a Japanese competitor in a daze with blood on her face struggling to get her bike back in order and spectators trying to comfort us. All I kept saying was, "I gotta finish, I must finish!" I also thought of my friends and all of Canada watching TV at home and I just couldn't quit !not with everyone cheering for me. Just like the famous Tanzanian marathoner in the 1968 Mexico City Olympics, who finished bloodied and bruised over an hour after everyone else, and most of the spectators had left. He said he couldn't quit. His country had not sent him there to start the race, but to finish the race. I was that Tanzanian! I was getting more concerned as each minute passed that I would not get the chance to finish and cross the finish line, something I had worked so long and hard to do. Finally after about 6 min, the mechanic came running with spare wheels and got me on my way. In my harried mental state, I had forgotten to do a more thorough check of my bike where I would have seen that both water bottles had fallen out !so I was also without water for the last 30km of the cycle! It then became a time trial with the front group and myself. "Don't let them catch me." I was all bloodied and my back and elbow were hurting quite badly but I didn't notice is as much as the task at hand. The front group wasn't far back, but I managed to hold them off for the duration of the bike and even got faster than them in the last lap! It was very tough to come into transition as one of the last bikes and in front of such a huge crowd, with so many Canadian supporters. I was in tears. The run was so tough, more mentally than physically. My body was in rough shape and my neck was killing me, but for 10km, thoughts of my ruined Olympic dreams rushed through my mind. There are no words to describe what I was going through. But I knew that at least I could finish, 11 other women had crashed and only two of us were able to finish. I crossed the finish line in 38th position. I was in tears, but I also had a smile on my face ? I had come to terms with myself during the race and I had to finish with my head up and be proud. Dave was in tears, but tried not to show it; to be positive and give me the support I needed so much at that point. I have gone over the race in my head nearly every day since then, and there are always the 'what ifs' (what if I didn't get sick, what if I had a better start position, what if I wasn't in that spot at the time of the crash!). The reason why Olympics are so special is that you must have everything go perfect on one day. The opportunity to get that perfect day comes only once every four years and you only get one, or maybe two shots at it. Simon Whitfield had one of those days, and it was thrilling to be in the stands to watch it. The morning following my race, I received so many emails I could hardly read them all! Those emails are what really helped me to get me back on my feet and allow me to enjoy the remainder of the Games. The outpouring of kind words from friends,children I had never met, parents all saying that they were proud of my performance and courage, and that I was a great role model for children. I nearly short-circuited my computer from all the tears falling on the keyboard!

So that was the story of my race! The remainder of the Games was spectacular and it just flew by! Dave stayed an extra 10 days of which one-week we stayed with an ex-RMC friend now working in Sydney. We had a blast! The highlight was Mon Sep 25th Athletics Finals where we saw our hero Haile Gebrsellasie (Ethiopia) in the 10,000m win by 9/100th of a second! Plus there was the Cathy Freeman 400m final, Micheal Johnson 400m, women's pole vault, women's 5,000m and triple jump. The stadium attendance broke the record for Athletics at 112,600. We saw many other events, such as mountain biking, road cycling, boxing, basketball, volleyball. It was a lot of fun. When Dave left, I had 5 more days until the end of the Games. I spent most of my time hanging out with the Canadian Cycling Team and had an incredible time. The closing ceremonies were phenomenal and I must have taken three rolls of film. We unfurled a huge Canadian Flag that was clearly shown on the GoodYear blimp cameras! It was an incredible party that continued at the Athlete's Village, which, by the way was incredible. The village had the most extreme security to enter, and it housed 10,000 athletes with every service available. The dining hall was massive and could feed 5-6000 at once, and had an endless variety of food items to satisfy any religion or culture ! not to mention a McDonalds and free ice cream!! I shared a room with another triathlete in a townhouse. This subdivision would be sold after the end of the Games. The organization of the whole Games was impeccable, mostly due to the over 40,000 volunteers! It was an incredible experience.

Post Olympics:
They always talk about the down side after Olympics and I did feel it as I left Sydney and realized that I must go back to a normal life (whatever that is!). I arrived Oct 4th to a bunch of well-wishers at Ottawa airport as well as a limousine from Kingston with Dave and two friends! What a lovely surprise. One week after arriving, Simon and I were given a huge reception at City Hall with over 3000 in attendance! We were given wonderful original paintings by a local artist as well as the Key to the City!! Simon and I threw out a few prizes to those schools that had the best signs. There was one that said "Simon says Gold, Sharon says be bold." It was amazing to see the outpouring of well-wishers, especially the large number of children. After the presentations, Simon and I signed autographs for over 3 hours! Then we went to a local pub, Kingston Brewing Coy, where they had made two special batches of beer in our names with proceeds going to charities of our choice. Mine was called Donnelly's Dark (obviously a dark beer ! it was the best of course!) and Simon's Golden Kick. Finally I have reached success ! I had a beer named after me!!

Fast-forward to today, Dec 8th and I look back over the two months since I returned from Olympics. I have been involved in over 30 functions such as: local radio and TSN TV shows, dropping a puck at the Frontenac's hockey game, grand marshal of the Santa Claus Parade and over a dozen school visits reaching over 3000 children! I have loved every bit of it! Tiring yes, but extremely rewarding, especially when you see the looks on kids faces when I show my video and talk with them. Later, I hear from parents how their children came home so excited and motivated! Wow, if I can positively influence a kids life, that is the ultimate; that is success! I didn't win a gold medal, in fact my race was the worst result I have had in triathlon, but my performance in the race is one of which I am most proud and mostly because of how I have been able to use it to motivate others. Now I am settling down more into a normal routine, cutting back on the appearances and spending some quality time at home! Dave and I discussed the future and we both decided that we could go for another shot at Olympics! Yes that is correct! Of course, one year at a time and a big look again at our chosen path in 2002. But I am really enjoying the sport, Dave is very supportive and just as important ! financially I am able to do it. I have re-signed with all of my sponsors, and I don't think I could continue if they were not there to help me. You are probably worn out from reading this extensive letter (it was a big year for us, and I was also remiss in sending out holiday greetings last year ! so I must make up for it this year!). So, I would like to wish you all the best for a safe and wonderful holiday season and all the best for 2001.

I will leave you with this quote that comes from one of many that I stuck on my wall this summer little did I know that it would be the one that would define my Olympic race: "Our greatest glory consists NOT in never falling, but in RISING each time we fall."

Sincerely,

Sharon Donnelly


50A Queenston Heights
Kingston, ON, K7K 5J5
(T) 613-544-6768
(F) 613-544-1300
email: Sharon@sirius.ca
www.SharonDonnelly.com

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For your information, the following are my sponsors who supported me in my Sydney Olympic quest, and are continuing to support me!

Empire Financial Group Oakley
Sirius Consulting GroupOutdoor Gear Canada
The Army DND/CFComputrainer
Logistik UnicorpEndurox R4
The International Group IncORCA wetsuits
The Davies Charitable FoundationDefeet bike wear
SpeedoGiro helmets
SauconyTriAll3 bike cases
PowerBarAquila Bicycles

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