Just The Beginning
So picture the scene. I'm sitting in a hotel room in Germany, with Pete sitting next to me, and it's 10:47pm. It's been a long day and I'm trying to decide whether to wait up any longer or give up and head to bed. See, I'm waiting for a call. A very important call that partially determines the culmination of 12 months of insane training; soul-destroying weights sessions and frustrating evenings of throwing, major breakthroughs and numerous training bests. This call determines whether this whole year has been just about the journey or whether the dream of one moment in time, 60 seconds that would never be forgotten, will actually become a reality and I will walk out in exactly 7 weeks’ time to the famous 'Hampden Roar'.
10:49pm and I'm very glad that I didn't go to bed! I am going to be a part of the biggest team that Scotland has ever taken to a Commonwealth Games and it is going to take place on home soil, in front of a huge home crowd. We end the call and I promptly dissolve into tears of absolute, overwhelming relief.
Having been calmed down by Pete, I then called my parents getting as far as “I’ve just had a call…and I’ve been selec…” before ending up in tears again! My parents have done so much for me over the years and particularly this year, when they agreed to support me in my decision to train full-time, that I was so relieved that I hadn’t given them cause to question whether their huge investment of time, energy and money had been worth it. It’s a shame that I wasn’t able to tell them in person but it was a pretty good early present for my Dad’s birthday the next day! I did have a bit more self-control by the time I called my coach John, though I was no less aware of the huge amount of time and effort he’d put into my training and how glad I was that I was giving him good news! It’s safe to say that I slept like a baby that night, and was still smiling when I woke up.
The official announcement took place a few days later and I don’t think it really hit home until the messages of congratulations and support came pouring in from friends and family through Facebook and Twitter. It was overwhelming to go through each comment and I’ve tried to create this bank of support in my head to take with me through the next 6 weeks.
After all this is just the beginning again. Getting selected was a huge milestone but ultimately it is just the first step towards the main goal of performing to the best of my ability in the final of the women’s hammer at the Commonwealth Games. So now it’s time to get my head down, work hard and make sure I’m in the best shape possible to face the qualifying rounds in Hampden on Sunday 27th July.
See you there!