Sally Kehoe: The Olympic Torch Relay

Towards 2012

Beijing has been and gone. Many lessons have been learnt. London 2012 may seem a while away, but for us, the journey has already begun.

This year I have been selected in the Australian Women's Double Scull to compete at the World Rowing Championships in Poznan at the end of August. My partner, Pippa Savage, a fellow Toowoomba girl, made her international debut last year in the Olympic Single Scull. In the past Pippa and I have shared a great rivalry, competing for Australia's Single Scull title, however, not until now have we combined our talents; and it is proving to be a formidible duo.

As we close in on this year's world championships, we are excited about our potential. This weekend we will be racing at Sydney International Regatta Centre alongside our fellow Australian team mates, testing our speed over 2000m and working on consistent performances. At the regatta's conclusion, we will be entering into a four week intensive training camp in Penrith before flying to Verase, Italy for a pre-World's speed camp.

Important Dates:
10th-12th July - SIRC Rowing Australia 'World Cup' regatta
14th-31st July - Penrith Intensive Training Camp
1st-9th August - Australian Rowing Team Preparation Camp
9th August - Fly to Italy
10th-20th August - Pre-World's Speed Camp (Varese, Italy)
23rd-30th August - World Rowing Championships, Poland

Saturday, April 26, 2008

The Olympic Torch Relay

The last two days have been what I feel to be the beginning of a very exciting Olympic experience. The night before the torch relay, the women's eight was invited to the Great Hall at Parliament House for a celebration of the torch relay hosted by the Ambassador of the People's Republic of China, HE Mr Zhang Junsai. Attendees of the function were the other torch bearers,

politicians of Australia and the Australian Capital Territory and many other celebrities including Ian Thorpe and Mark Beretta. The night was an amazing experience, with the Chinese entertaining us with their traditional drums and dancers.

The following day, 24th April, it was the torch relay. After a practice run the day before, we were escorted to Reconciliation Place on Lake Burley Griffin by several water police. We were welcomed by thousands of Chinese students who were bussed in from Melbourne and Sydney (over 100 buses). Their support was unexpected and truly amazing. After receiving the flame, we rowed it across to the bottom of Anzac Avenue before the torch was carried towards the Australian War Memorial. Here we were met more a few more thousand Chinese people, who were very excited about the occasion, as they were shouting out to us 'We Love You' and 'Welcome to Beijing'. Fortunately we were not disrupted by protesters. However, the Chinese Embassy has to be commended on their efforts to bus over 100 buses to Canberra from Sydney and Melbourne and supply them with shirts saying 'One China, One World, One Dream' and other merchandise including Chinese flag stickers and Beijing flags.

The torch relay was quite an experience and one of many to come. We are all packing up and getting ready for the World Cups to come in just over a week now. It will be a good opportunity to see how we stand against the rest of the world.