| Delhi Bound |
We departed Aigle early on the 27th travelling by car through to Milan Italy. As we drove up one side of the mountains we passed through the clouds and could feel the temperature plummet. The trees that clung to the mountain sides looked like over grown Christmas trees that had been frozen as ice lay on every little fine bristle on them. Then as we went down the other side of the mountain pass headed for Italy It was as if spring never looked like changing. After 4 hours we arrived at Malpensa airport and checked in and we departed at 530pm bound for Munich. A three hour stop over there before we were Delhi bound. After a total travel time of 20 hours we touched down in New Delhi. We were greeted at the gate by guards who escorted us past the usual customs area to a special Games delegated customs are where we could sit and relax, have a free drink of something to eat while waiting for the team to have all their accreditations authorised. Then we were again escorted to the conveyor belts to collect our luggage and our bikes of which everything arrived. We had more than required volunteers happy to carry bags or push trolleys loaded with equipment. I was pulled aside as we stepped out of Delhi airport to face some media interested in our teams’ arrival. We were one of the first teams to arrive and so the interest was high. I fielded lots of questions from how I felt I would perform, to having a young team to Travis Meyer’s decision to withdrawal, the feel of the team coming to Delhi etc. We then got onto our bus which was Commonwealth Games assigned. At the front of the bus was a policeman on a motorbike, on the bus were police men, a fully armed military man (machine gun and all) and behind the bus was a jeep carrying more armed policemen. The security was extremely high. We drove for almost one hour to reach the Games Village and every 30-50 meters was an armed guard either police or army. At every intersection were officers to stop traffic and allow us to run red lights. We did not stop once on the entire ride. The drive itself showed a side of life we as Australians would very rarely see or understand. It was sad to see so many shanty’s that people called home. The unseasonal torrential rain had made the earth extremely choppy but dry now the sun was shining. We passed rubbish tips and it wasn’t until I took a closer look that people were living in the tip under tarps. There was traffic galore, many on bicycles and motorbikes, others in cars and three wheeler taxi rides. Buses were overflowing with people yet ours was less than half full. The police sirens wailed the whole time to warn people of our coming and to get out of the way. There was a designated lane marked off by witches’ hats that only Commonwealth Games vehicles could use causing what I would assume to be backed up traffic to be even more condensed. Old mosques lined the country side and I even saw a school with all the children seated at what appeared to be school role call or assembly. It was dry and very dusty despite the deluge of rain they have had recently. As we ventured closer to the city the dry cracked ground gave way for mowed lawns and kept gardens, trees that lurched over the main roads and larger buildings guarded by high fences. We passed the main stadium where the athletics and opening and closing ceremonies will be held. We passed under the bridge that collapsed into that main stadium and it was swarming with army personal rebuilding it at a rapid rate. No matter where I looked there was always someone doing something. The Indians are hard workers that’s for sure. As we approached the Athletes village we could see the bodies of water lying around it as a result of the rain and rising of the nearby river. Towers of buildings appeared as we turned into to village where we stopped and were checked for safety outside the bus before being let through the boom gates. There would be no getting into this place by unauthorised people. Walls enclose the village that are 6 feet high with fencing and barbed wire at the top. Security check point after security check point. We passed through security screening of our luggage and our persons before walking to the towers that housed the Aussie team. It was hot and it was muggy but the ground seemed so dusty and dry. There were aesthetically parts of the village that were incomplete and damaged. Things like the walkways weren’t all concreted, there were cracks in some concrete slabs, water fountains weren’t finished, grass couldn’t grow in the muddy garden areas, the paving and gutters were uneven things like that. There was a lot of dirt and dust around the parts; such is the conditions of the country we are visiting. We got to our buildings and there were so many cleaners outside our entrances with their mop buckets. We got our rooms and despite all the reports they are pretty good. 4 rooms to an apartment, each room with its own bathroom, a shared kitchen, dining, laundry and lounge. If you look closely you see that the finish around the electrical sockets are not perfect and the paint around places is not neat and there is dust on the tiled floors, grouting isn’t perfect but everything is in working order and I got to say pretty nice accommodation. Eventually at the games conclusion these apartments will be sold off to be shared by a number of families. But it seems poor to complain about the conditions inside the village when we can clearly see that outside the level of poverty is high. What’s a cracked tile, or what’s uneven concrete or what’s the electricity going on and off every now and then when people don’t even have a roof over their head. I opened my room to see a colourful Delhi Games doona sprawled on my bed with our Team bag filled with team clothing. The excitement certainly was there. Bug scents were plugged into the rooms already with extra supply of mozzie protection. After a quick shower and a quick try on of all the clothes it was off to grab a bite to eat at the food hall before a team briefing with the ACGA and taking some time for a nap. The afternoon of my first day in the Village I went to the International zone to see if I could find some souvenirs to by for family back home. I found some stuff but will need to make more than one trip J I did however find a few things that I really liked. They were paintings, very fine paintings and I must have spent 20 minutes sitting down and going through them all until the shop owner came over and asked me if I wanted help. I just told him that I was admiring them. I did purchase a few but for me the artist herself came in. Sneh is her name and she was asked by the Prime Minister of India himself to come to the village and paint to share and educate people on Indian Art and its skills. I spent a good half an hour or more with Sneh as she explained and showed me how they made their own paints, how she processed the paper and finally what the paint brushes were made of to allow them to paint so finely. It takes her up to 10 days to complete a painting A4 size and the finer the brush strokes the higher in value the painting is. It was amazing to talk with her and to see her do what she does as a profession. She is here for a few weeks so I will visit a lot to see the progress of her works and to keep saying hi. After a bit of a shop and a rest in the room, Kaarle, Emily, Scott, Dan and I played air hockey at the resident hall before enjoying dinner. The food hall is pretty good actually, fully air-conditioned and with a lot of variety of food all of really good quality. We followed dinner by playing pool and that brings me to this moment where I am trying hard to keep my eyes open sitting on my bed typing this. We haven’t been able to gain access to internet yet and some rooms are without electricity (Poor Berthy) So all in all on the whole things are not perfect but they aren’t too bad either. I am off for a press conference in the morning with Steve Monoghetti, ACGA President and then I will be on the track for the first time tomorrow afternoon. Something I am very much looking forward to. Day Two in the village What a good night sleep I had last night! A solid 9-10 hours. Poor Gary didn’t have such a good sleep though as his room lost power during the night and with it the use of a fan or air conditioner. But like most Aussie’s and their humour/character when he told us, his athletes about it, he copped a fair bit of laughter and grief from us before some sympathy. It seems that my daily moisturiser has been replaced by mozzie repellent. When I wake up, after every shower and before heading outside especially at dawn and dusk when they seem to be out in more force. Long pants and jackets are the order of the day despite the fact it is very warm outside but it is best not to be bitten then the contrary. I had a press conference with Steve Moneghetti, the Australian Chef De Mission, this morning and Lauren Mitchell from Gymnastics. A solid 30-40 minuted of questions ranging from our impression of the games to our opinion of the level of competition to the importance of the games to security, the list goes on. It was hot and there were a lot of media in the room. From there I went straight to our team meeting followed by a sit down with channel ten who showed great interest in my tiger blanket. They asked if I had superstitions, I said I was more particular than superstitious. They asked what I meant by that and so I told them about my blanket I made as an 18 year old that has been to every competition round the world with me and that gives me my own space within a tight busy pit area. They were fascinated by it so will be interesting how that comes across back home J After lunch we ventured on the bus again with full escort the 6km to the velodrome. It took us about 20 minutes to get there. We passed individually through security and we each were hand searched before being allowed to enter the venue. Down the stairs, through the tunnel and up into I have to say a beautiful velodrome! And it looks so big after being on Aigle at only 200m. The boards are smooth and grippy but like most places where the climate is hot, the air conditioning was blaring. It was between 35 and 40 degrees outside and 21 degrees inside. For a velodrome the hotter it is the faster it is so we asked for the air con to be turned off for the session as it even made it hard to ride from the draught and breeze it was creating at points around the track. I didn’t do much today but of what I did I feel it is a very nice track to ride on and filled with people it’s going to be pretty special. Competition for us starts on October 5th. I want to wish my dad a happy birthday for this October 4th. My racing schedule is below for you to follow, or check your stations for when coverage is on. Thank you to everyone for their support for these games, please keep it coming. It is nice to know when we are so far from home that we are in the thoughts of people back home. Times below are Indian time zone. 500m Time Trial - October 5th 1:30pm Team sprint Qualifying - October 6th 11:50am Team Sprint Final - October 6th 1:30pm 200m Qualifying - October 6th 5pm Sprint Quarter’s - October 7th 11am Sprint Semi’s - October 7th 1:30pm Sprint Final’s - October 7th 3pm |
