Its Our Time!!

Watching our womens soccer team qualify for the Olympics was so exciting! See their hard work and fight paying off and the smiling faces that showed how much it meant to them! It really made me even more excited and even more eager for Turkey. For some us this has been a long time coming we have seen Olympics come and go and with no Canadian team in the basketball competition but this year I just feel like this is our year! We have trained and trained and been together as a group for a good amount of time to just know that this will be the year that all of our fight and sacrific will have paid off. At the momnet I am playing in Australia for a pro team here and as much as I am playing for the team here everything I do over here is for the team back home! This is it and I could not be more confident and determinded about what is ahead of us! Thank you for all the support and followers and hopefully when we come to BC we will see everyone out to see us play China!!

Inspiring

I hope all of you Canadians residing in Canada were able to catch our Women's Soccer team, they played their Olympic qualifying tournament in Vancouver BC. They beat Mexico to qualify for London. It was truly inspiring watching them play on home soil, BC place was packed. I was tearing up at the end of their game against Mexico with a few minutes left the crowd started signing the national anthem. I imagine as an athlete that is quite possibly one of the coolest experiences; qualifying for the Olympics in your home country and the crowd singing the anthem. I mean I get goosebumps just typing it. I was fixated to the TV and watched a full 20 minutes of their celebrations after the game. I was so fired up that evening that I couldn't sleep at all I just kept on dreaming of our opportunity this summer. I can not wait to get to Turkey!!

We do have some great news for all you BC folks out there... games! We do not have official dates yet but middle to end of May you will get a chance to watch us in action. China one of the top teams in the world is coming out. We are looking to pack the gyms! For any high school, junior high or club team coaches we would love to talk with your teams so mark May down on your calendars.

GO CANADA GO!!

Thank you :)

Hello everyone. I know I'm kind of late but Happy New Year!! :)

We are about 4 months away from the start of training camp and I spoke to some of the players and I can feel the excitement!

I have made a personal decision to stay in Toronto to train this year leading up to the Olympic Qualifiers. I am grateful for all the help I have been getting from everyone here who has sacrificed their time and services to help me get ready for the big summer ahead of us. It's a bit of a change from being overseas and I have had to make a few adjustments but I feel I made the best decision for me and I am happy with the way things have turned out.

We are all so thankful for the support we get as a team and as individuals. Without all the support we could not be the team and program we are today. We are escpecially grateful for all of you who take interest in our team and follow us on our path to greatness!

Alisha

Hello from the USA!

Hey All!

Here is a little update on my life! (which has been crazyy busy but wonderful!)

I have decided to take somewhat of a non-traditional path in comparison to my teammates and instead of returning overseas I am pursuing my Masters and training in the USA! for now.. haha :)

I am doing a million things at once but somehow managing to not stress out because I am really loving everything I am doing.

Let me preface by outlining my major commitments:
1. Training
2. Full Time Masters Student (Exercise Science)
3. Graduate Assistant for the Faculty/Staff Wellness Program
4. UD Women's Basketball Head Strength and Conditioning Coach
5. Hostess and soon to be Server at Jimmy's Ladder 11 Restaurant and Bar

SO for those of you looking at that list in confusion let me explain one by one.

1. My training has been going really great..finally. When I arrived back from the university games my back was a little tight and a little sore, well I figured 4 days rest would suffice and then started back full go. Not smart! Within a couple of weeks it was getting worse so for a week or so then I took 2 days off. Then I tried to modify my workouts to "take it easy" and after a couple weeks of this I could barely walk because my back seized up so badly. At this point I woke up out of my stupidity and got on a physio program and took some time off. I worked with a physio team here in Dayton, Ohio on a slow, progressive recovery program with the goal of nipping my back issues in the butt instead of struggling through workouts all year. Success! I returned to the court in December and have been beating up on a few guys in a Men’s League! Dayton really is a magnificent set-up for me training wise with the facilities and access to people to train with.

2. I am in love with my courses and so happy to be back in school! Straight A’s my first semester! I have been thinking about doing my Doctorate at U of M (Where Krista went for her Undergrad!) after I am done. But back to the present: I am going to be a TA for the Anatomy lab course this semester and dissecting cadavers! (SERIOUSLY exciting)!

3. My Graduate Assistant Position is really great. Basically I organize all the classes and events for faculty and staff that have to do with health. We offer all sorts of classes for our faculty/staff (like yoga, pilates, spinning, body sculp, etc.) for a really cheap price (1$ per class, 20/ semester). We also offer health risk screenings that measure blood pressure and cholesterol and we do mammograms and flu shots and audiology and glaucoma screenings. I just think it is a really great program that reaches a lot of people and I love being a part of helping our campus become healthier. We also offer lectures on topics like “10 simple steps to making healthy eating more delicious” and part of my position is to teach the fac/staff strength and conditioning class and I am also picking up the fac/staff walking club this semester too!

4. This was very unexpected and crazy. To tell it quickly, the women’s team got a new strength coach this year that was not working out and the head coach asked if I could do the girls team strength and conditioning and I accepted. It is going really well and the girls are making some great improvements in the weight room.

5. So I am doing all these things but not getting paid a lot to do them. So in the meantime I am the hostess at a restaurant on weeknights!

SO as I said life is crazy but because I am enjoying everything I am doing it is great! I’ll keep everyone posted on all the excitement next semester brings!

Bye for now and HAPPY NEW YEAR!

Kendel

Litho land update!

So Kim started us off very nicely with an update, so I will try my best to follow it up.

After qualifiers, I was home for two days and then flew back to Lithuania to play for Vici Aistes for my second year. The first month was pretty hectic as we had road games for the first three weeks, so I was on a plane for what felt like all of October!

My team has not been doing as well as we would like, and are 1-7 in euroleague right now. For the most part we are staying positive and trying to get better everyday! Our team has no WNBA stars or real big European stars, so when you are going up against Diana Taurasi, Candace Parker, or Tina Charles on a weekly basis it is a bit difficult.

The good thing about this tough competition, is I am getting to play the best in the world, and work on my skills so when it comes to qualifiers next summer I am playing the best I can! (I cannot wait to get back with Canada, and help achieve our goals)!

Outside of basketball I have been really enjoying my friends over here in Lithuania, and glad I have had the opportunity to see more unique places in the world!

Thats all for me!

Courtnay

Happy December!

Hello fans!

Kim Smith here going to give you a little update on my life since qualifiers. I choose not to go overseas right away... my body is old! It has taken me a few years to realize that I maybe can't play year round at a high level. I want to do whatever I need to do to be ready for June 25th. Speaking of playing while you are older I ran into some amazing ballers today at the gym. A team of 8 ladies all over 70 running an early Friday morning practice. It was quite a treat to watch them play a little 3 on 3, they played hard I even saw a little blood from some scratches! They placed 6th in their age group at nationals last year and are training for them again this year. They get together every Friday morning for practices. They were a pretty amazing group of women who grew up before title nine and were never afforded the privileges we have become accustomed to. They love playing the game and their enthusiasm was quite contagious.

The first month following qualifiers I stayed away from the gym. It is something I wish I would have done when I was younger but I was pretty crazy back then and my college season and summer season always seemed to overlap. I have found it gives my body a good chance to heal and getting away mentally is also a nice perk. Of course when you are pretty active taking a full month off is near impossible. I found myself stealing bikes from family and friends and going on long bike rides or taking our dog on a hike. Come mid November I couldn't wait to get back in the gym and start working on my game again.

Thanks for checking back with the blog there should be an update from all my teammates so keep hitting up the site to hear all about our individual paths to June 25th!

GO CANADA!!

215 Days until we qualify!

Liz and Kim coming to you from the Olympic Excellence series in Mississauga, ON. What an amazing experience; words really can't describe but we will do our best! The Olympic Excellence series is held once a year leading up to the Olympics and it features athletes from all different sports, the health sciences team (nutritionists, doctors, physios etc) coaches and all the people who work hard for us at the Canadian Olympic Committee. Including our chef de mission Mark Tewksbury (you may remember him from his gold medal swim in Barcelona). His passion was contagious, every time he talked you wanted to head straight to the gym and start training again. So inspired that despite the 1am bed times Liz and I woke up at 6:15 to take advantage of the yoga classes and went back later in the day to get some cardio and lifting in.

It was inspiring and fascinating chatting with other athletes learning about their training routines, training environments and past experiences at the Olympics. We had a chance to hear from Jon Montgomery, Kristina, Groves, Melissa Hollingsworth, Alex Bilodeau- all successful Vancouver 2010 olympians. They chatted about the disappointments and trials they faced leading up to the games and either the heart break of losing or the euphoria of winning a medal on home soil. We also had a chance to hear from some summer Olympians who spoke of the grandeur of the summer games.

All of the Olympians who spoke touched on different ways the Olympics and competing were a part of their everyday lives. Jon Montgomery (the guy famous for drinking his beer on tv while walking through the streets of Vancouver) said “Gold medal finishes are a part of everything I do, when I go to the bathroom, hey, I am going right for the middle urinal… top of the podium baby!”

One of the most inspirational series was Ernie McCullough a 1948 Olympian who spoke of the games many years ago in London. He is 86 years young and still spoke with so much passion when reminiscing about his Olympic days. Can you believe all the Canadian athletes were crammed on a boat for 7 days and then just jumped right into Olympic competitions! We complain about 12 hour plane rides.

One of the sessions was on the layout of the Olympic village; you want to talk about motivation. We both got goose bumps when they pointed out where the basketball venue is… Right across the street from the Olympic village! We saw pictures of the rooms and exactly where the Canadian house will be.

Mark Tewksbury told us his amazing story and how he was able to get to the podium because one day he thought “Why not me? I have put in the work, why can’t I be the best?”

One of our favorite quotes from the weekend came Adam van Koeverden (the kayaker), he said “You have to act like a kid while you dream-with no limits and fear, but then bring the wisdom of an adult in how you compete-with composure and dedication”.

The last two days were spent working with the media, doing interviews, radio spots and photo shoots. We got our hair and make up done; how great would it be if you had someone to do your hair and make up every day. Not only do you look great but you are ready in about half the time.

We have to give a huge thank you to the Canadian Olympic Committee for putting on this series. There was so many people who worked hard to help get us motivated and give us a little advantage and we appreciate it.

Be sure to check back in regularly as each player will start updating once a month. Giving you all a look into their training and life as we gear up for June 25th!!

As of today, there are 238 days until the Games begin, and 215 days until our qualifier!