Back to Sunny So-Cal

Lets see, where to start this one off…It always seems as if I have a chance to update my blog, or at least gather my thoughts on the long flights home. As of right now its 7:55PM San Diego Time and I am exactly over the Mississippi River on my way home from Moscow. I left Moscow about 26 hours ago, and according to the flight computer, still have about 3 hours and 3 minutes to go. The flight home was pretty flawless from Moscow to Zürich, then to JFK in New York, but then the flight that was scheduled for 3PM was delayed until 8PM…not that it matters because after 20 hours it all starts to run together anyway…am I rambling?..Back to the updates.

The last update was as I was leaving a pretty bad trip in Brazil that I fortunately threw decent in and scored some needed World Athletics Tour Points. The next stop was Berlin for the 1st Golden League of the year. I arrived to Berlin a few days ahead of schedule, which was needed because I spent the better part of 3 days at the Russian consulate in Berlin trying to get the Visa for the Moscow Meets, more on that later. Berlin was a welcome treat after being in Brazil, being able to eat food without fear of intestinal parasites and brushing your teeth with tap water were very welcome comforts. The organization of the Golden League staff was nothing short of amazing, the ISTAF (International Stadium Festival) directors had a fully staffed 24 hour office at the meet hotel and were there for every need an athlete could have…they even hired a driver to take me to wash some clothes (much needed after 2 weeks in South America). The meet went off without a hitch and I threw 81.14m for 5th place in a field that was made up of essentially the Olympic Final. As a result of my placing I was invited to the 2nd Golden League meeting of the year in Oslo, Norway, the Bislett Games.

Ah Oslo, what else can I say about Oslo in the summer other than heaven on earth, there were times that I felt like intentionally “misplacing” my passport in hopes to be able to stay there for the remainder of my career, did I say career, I meant life ;) The Bislett Games staff was just as adept at making sure all the details needed for a world-class competition were catered to and the competition was also a tremendous success. The conditions were not ideal for long throws at the Bislett Stadium as many of the competitors were 3-5m under their normal seasonal marks. It wasn’t until the last round that 3 guys made massive moves and personal bests that I was pushed to 7th place with 80.37m. I was happy with my performance and was content with heading back home and getting 4 solid preparation weeks for the Olympic Trails, but then…. there was Russia.
I spent the better part of 3 days at the Russian Consulate in Berlin, attempting to acquire the Visa needed for Americans to enter Russia. I should have known I was in for a rough ride when I entered the consulate (after waiting 2 hours outside) and was quickly notified that the only languages that were spoken there were….take a guess, Russian and German. I finally acquired the help of a local guy there who spoke English who attempted to help me get to the Visa application window (picture 40 people huddled around a 3 foot by 3 foot window…all pissed off as hell for waiting outside and inside for numerous hours). I could go on forever about the nightmare there, but Ill skip to the summary. I had the wrong papers, no surprise, wrong size photo ect…so I returned the following day to repeat the 4 hour process all over again, only to be told to return the 3rd day to repeat the process all over again, yes 12 hours total waiting in the consulate for the stupid Visa…oh yeah and then there was the actual trip to Russia.
Here goes, I arrived in Moscow on June 8th for the competition on June 10th the Moscow Open. I was met by a man at the airport who spoke English and said that I would be taken to the meet hotel where I would meet the competition organizers ect…that was the last bit of English I heard for 24 hours. I was dropped off at Olympic Stadium (1980) and I waited there for almost an hour before I figured out the hotel (if you want to call it that) was in the stadium itself, actually around the top of it….one would think, wow a hotel at Olympic Stadium, should be nice right? Picture a hostel that sits directly above a 24 hour construction zone, fully equipped with dump trucks, jack hammers, sledge hammers, and back hoes.
There were some major renovations that were taking place to the stadium after the Manchester United vs Chelsea football match there a few weeks ago. Oh yeah, no hot water (due to construction), no internet…yeah spoiled I know, no AC and 3 channels for the TV…all in all those things can actually be dealt with, but when you don’t have access to some of the most basic necessities to get ready for a competition, its difficult to expect good results. I did see some amazing sights at the Moscow Open, I saw women that looked like men and men that looked like machines, which I was told was “quite normal” in that area on Olympic years if you know what I mean. Anyways, I was fortunate enough to throw 79.26m to take 2nd behind 2003 World Champion, Sergey Makarov of Russia. From the Moscow Open I traveled to another suburb of Moscow called Zhukovsky for the Zhukovsky Memorial. This competition was run 100 times better than the Moscow Open but the weather unfortunately didn’t cooperate with us. I was poorly prepared for the wet conditions and my performance reflected that preparation with a 4th place finish just under 75m.










So now I’m on the way home after 8 competitions in 6 weeks and 5 countries for some much needed rest and preparation for the Olympic Trails that are in just 3 weeks time. My remaining schedule leading up to Beijing will be dependent on my finish at the Trails. If I throw over 83m and place top 2, the I will be confirmed for the following meets before Beijing:
July 11 – Rome Golden League – Rome, Italy
July 18 – Paris Golden League – Paris, France
Jluy 22 – DN Galan Super Grand Prix – Stockholm, Sweden
If I do not throw over 83m, then I will likely be forced to the following meetings:
July 13 – Athens Super Grand Prix - Athens, Greece
July 16 – Lucerne Grand Prix – Lucerne, Switzerland
July 20 – Heusden Grand Prix – Heusden, Belgium

…time will tell…check back with you after the Trial, Ill take good luck wishes if your dishing them out ;)
“The boy who is going to make a great man must not make up his mind merely to overcome a thousand obstacles, but to win in spite of a thousand repulses and defeats.” Teddy Roosevelt