My first opportunity on the world stage came this April at the IAAF World Relays in Yokohama, Japan. The second opportunity came at the FISU World University Games in Naples, Italy (pictured below). My third this year will come in a about 5 days at the IAAF World Championships in Doha, Qatar. What a year.
Woah.. of course I started crying instantly upon reading the email that I was selected to the World Team (and called my sister immediately). So much excitement and raw emotion came to the surface, I struggle to put it into words.
I have a such a visceral feeling of gratitude for these opportunities to compete at the highest level this year. I am most grateful for my team of people: from my family who are my motivation, inspiration and biggest lights in my life, to my coach who has prepared me for moments like this and who has believed in me and trusted me from the start, to my friends near and far who send endless love and good vibes, to my physio and massage who help keep my body ready to perform, to my Canadian teammates who make these experiences so much fun and forever memorable, to the little girls smiling up at us at European meets, inspiring a younger generation. At the end of the day, we will be remembered for how we make people feel and how they made us feel... not always for our accomplishments. So thank you to the people who impact me day in and day out, who push me, who make me better always and who believe in me fully, even at the times when I didn't fully believe in myself.
The job isn't done. Just making the team isn't enough. Of course it's an accomplishment and a massive honor to represent my country on this stage, but we are striving for more than just 'being there'. Our relay is striving to perform to the best of our ability and to be on that podium... we know we can and we believe we will.
I have full faith in myself too. I am ready and excited for this individual 400m opportunity. Excited to let go and just race. To have that primal feeling of flying down the track smooth and open.
Breathe. Take in the moment. Cherish the feeling. Pull the Trigger. Let it go.
The 'behind the scenes' grind that that gets world class athletes to this stage is usually invisible to most. And honestly, that is part of the beauty of the sport. That the silent grind, laying sprawled out on the track, is a secret bond between all elite track athletes out there. We all know what it takes to make it (or are learning what it takes to make it) and so when we get our shot to perform, we focus on executing to the best of our ability. Dr. Grimes, a mentor of mine, would always say "best of skill" before races instead of saying "best of luck" because he believed that when we race it isn't all about luck. It is more about putting our hard-earned skills to the test and executing with what we have on that day.
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