Jon's Blog
27th Feb 10
Yesterday was the final day of competition at the Pacific Coliseum, and was to be one of the most exciting in British short track history. I got the ball rolling with my 500m quarter final. From lane 4, I knew I would need patients and clean overtakes to advance into the semi final, especially against current 500m Olympic champion Apolo Ohno. I used all the experience I have gained since the 2006 Olympics to come through the field and finish in first place, just ahead of Ohno. In the semi final I was lane 4 again, now with 5 men on the line, all with serious credentials to their name. Current World Champion Hamelin in 1, World Record holder Sung Si-Bak in 2, World Championship Bronze medallist Olivier Jean in 3, and Tyson from Germany on my outside. In such a high class race I had to wait for my chances to arise again, and when they did I made my move. Unfortunately this time I couldn’t pull it off, and qualified for the B-final. I finished the event in 6th place, 1 place lower than 4 years ago. Although disappointed not to make the A-final, I can walk away happy with 6th place amongst such a strong field, proving yet again I am one of the worlds fastest men.
Shortly after my B-final I was joined by the boys for a long awaited tussle with the Germans in the relay B-final. The Germans are ranked above us, and without Stan in the team we knew we would have to pull some serious shapes to get the better of them. In our final meeting before the race we were pleasantly surprised with a video message from home, starring our missing companion Stan! He wished us the best of luck and gave us a couple of ideas on how to race. The video worked a treat as we went into the race fuelled with determination and desire to win. The Germans battled hard, using Tyson to open gaps on us. However, our British grit shone through and they were unable to break us. The boys did a great job getting me to the last 2 laps in contention, leaving me to close down on their finishing man Paul Herrman. It is these moments that I skate for, finishing off an Olympic Final for my country, making a big overtake on the last corner, and crossing the line to take victory! What an incredible feeling, especially as the capacity crowd really got behind the race making lots of noise. The boys and I made the most of it soaking up the atmosphere and giving our supporters a big hand.
That evening we headed into Vancouver to celebrate our 6th place finish in the relay, ending up at the infamous Budweiser House. High spirits (and free beer) resulted in a brilliant night, as we partied well into the early hours. What a fantastic way to end a competition full of ups and downs, but ultimately very successful.
With just the closing ceremony left to attend in these final few days, all I would like to say is a massive THANK YOU! The support here in Vancouver and from home has been unbelievable, and means so much to me and the team. I would like to offer a special thank you to the family (Team Jon Eley) and friends who made it to the Coliseum to cheer us on. Stepping onto the ice knowing you have support in the crowd makes a huge difference and it certainly does not go unnoticed! I would also like to thank my team mates and the staff from GB short track who have made these past few weeks some of the most incredible of my life. I will never forget the experiences I have had here in Vancouver, and I am proud to have shared them all with you guys. So once again, thank you so much, and I’ll see everyone back in the UK very soon!
25th Feb 10
Wednesday was the start of my main event, the 500m. I had a difficult race, with current World Champion Charles Hamelin, and European Champion Nicola Rodigari. However I drew lane 1, so was confident of a good result. When the gun went, I was a little slower to react than I would have liked, and got held up by the Russian skater in lane 2. I stayed calm throughout the race, making some well timed overtakes to come through in 2nd place, qualifying for the quarter finals. Due to being held up, my time will place me in lane 4 in the next round, so I will have to pull out a really quick start! I was also joined by team mate Paul Worth (Dozer), who raced well, but had a really tough heat so unfortunately finished out of the qualifying spots.
Friday will be our last day of competition here at the Olympic Games, and our most important day. Not only do I have the 500m, but the boys are joining me for what will hopefully be another epic battle with the Germans. We are all pumped to get stuck in and show these Germans what we are made of. This morning we watched a video message from Paul Stanley, who gave us all some great encouragement, so we can’t wait to go out there and make him proud!
22nd Feb 10
The 3rd day of competition was all about one person, Elise! She stepped up to skate the 1500m, in which she is ranked 2nd in Europe. She put in a strong performance, but finished just outside the semi-finals in 20th place. While I was cheering Elise on, I managed to get up into the stands to see ‘Team Jon Eley’ (AKA my family). It was great to see them after such a long time away!
The last few days have been great here in the village, as I’ve had chance to meet some of my sporting heroes. As most of you are aware, I used to play ice hockey before moving to short track. I wasn’t sure if the Canadian hockey team would be staying in the village with me, but walking back from breakfast I saw star NHL player Sidney Crosbey! This was shortly followed by his Russian counterpart Alexander Ovechkin! Crosby and Ovechkin are considered the top 2 players in the world at the moment, so I couldn’t believe my luck. To top it off I was eating my lunch, and who sat down next to me? It was none other than the great Sir Steven Redgrave. It is moments like these which make the Olympic Games such a great experience.
On Wednesday I take to the ice in my favoured event, the 500m sprint. Training is going really well, so I’m looking forward to getting stuck into the competition. Back in 2006 I reached the Olympic final, finishing in 5th place, so let’s see if I can go even further this time!
18th Feb 10
Day 2 of competition a few days later was to be the conclusion of the girls 500m, the men’s 1000m heats, and the men’s relay semi finals. Sarah was up first, but had drawn lane 3 in a race with world number 1 Meng Wang of China, and the home favourite, Canada’s Jessica Gregg. Sarah needed a good start to improve her chances of making the semi finals, and she fought hard to do this, but 2 crashes on the first corner resulted in a (questionable) disqualification for Sarah, putting an end to her Olympic Games. Elise was up next, she showed the world her top speed by chasing down Canada’s Marianne St Gelais, but unfortunately took a bump towards the end of the race, finishing in 3rd place. However in her least favoured event this placed Elise 11th, so I can’t wait to see what she can do in the 1500m and 1000m, well done Elise!
Tom and I were up next, both in tough heats of the 1000m. I raced first, and feel I put in a good performance, sticking right behind medal favourite Charles Hamelin until the last lap when I left room for Sjinkie Knegt of The Netherlands to nip up my inside and steal qualification. I did however set a new British record, so I can walk away satisfied with my performance. Tom also did well, asserting himself on the race, and making some strong moves. Unfortunately he just slipped away in the final few laps, but still did a great job.
Tom and I were then joined by our 1500m duo Dougie and Jack for a bit of relay action! In the changing room we were pumped to get out there and give the race everything we had to try and beat the odds and make the A-final. Starting from lane 4 we had little choice than to bide our time and wait for opportunities. All 4 boys were skating strong and well in contention coming down to the last few exchanges. However just as the race really kicked on, we had a couple of small mistakes which created a gap. Although we fought hard to the end, we were unable to catch back up, and finished in an exhausted 4th place. I’m still proud of the job we did, especially of the other 3 guys in their first Olympic Games, thanks for being out there with me! For everyone who stayed up to watch us.. THANK YOU!!
Next up, Elise takes to the ice in the 1500m.. Good luck!
14th Feb 10
The day after the opening ceremony it was time to re-focus and get on with our job, after all, that’s why we are here! It was 1500m day for Dougie and Jack, and 500m heats for Elise and Sarah. As I sat in the stands waiting for my team mates to race, the Colleseum started to fill up, and the atmosphere was electric. Jack was first, skating a great race, and being rewarded for his effort when a crash on the final corner allowed him to come from behind and qualify through to the semi-finals. Dougie raced next, his endurance showed through in the final few laps, but finished just one place outside the qualifying spots. Jacks semi final got the whole of Team GB excited, when with just 4 laps to go he nipped up the inside into 1st place! We all went wild as he battled through the last few laps, but unfortunately fell down to 5th. This placed Dougie 25th, and Jack a creditable 16th at only 18 years old. The girls then finished off a great first day by both easing through their 500m heats into the quarter finals. Great job guys, I can’t wait to get our there myself in a few days!
13th Feb 10
It has been a really busy few days for me here in the village. On Thursday we attended the Great Britain team flag raising ceremony, which was much more entertaining than Turin. Sandra Oh, star of ‘Grey’s Anatomy’ hosted the ceremony, which involved traditional music and dancing inspired by the indigenous peoples of Canada.
The evening after the flag raising we pulled on our official BOA suits, and left the village to attend the Best Of British formal evening, hosted by HRH Princess Ann. I was pleased to see some familiar faces, including my future in-laws Sue and Paul Williams! We were also joined by many famous faces, including Sue Barker who invited all the athletes onto the stage to announce us officially as Vancouver 2010 Olympians. I must give a big congratulation to David Murdoch who was announced as Team GB captain, and Shelly Rudman who was given the honour of flag bearer for the opening ceremony.
The next day was to be one of the most inspirational of my life, the opening ceremony at BC Place. After training in the morning we got dressed up in our (questionable) parade wear, and met the rest of the team at HQ. We were shuttled to the Vancouver Canucks ice hockey stadium which is next door to BC Place and acted as the holding pen for all the athletes. A few hours of waiting later and the excitement started to build as we moved over to BC Place. We could hear the noise of the capacity crowd as we waited backstage for the show to start. Then it was our time, we marched out into the stadium to be welcomed by 60,000 screaming fans! It is these experiences which make all the years of pain and sacrifice worth it, a truly emotional and awe inspiring moment. We then took our seats and watched a spectacular show, which was topped off by my childhood hero Wayne Gretzky lighting the Olympic flame just 20 meters away from me!
This morning I trained with the Canadian team at the Killarney Centre, which went really well, with me continuing to feel really good heading into my first event on Wednesday. Later on Dougie and Jack race in the 1500m, joined by Sarah and Elise racing the first round of the 500m.. GOOD LUCK GUYS!!
10th Feb 10
I am now only 3 days away from the opening ceremony, and the atmosphere here in the building is really starting to build as more and more teams arrive. On Monday we were lucky enough to get a view of some firework rehearsals taking place across at BC Place. If they were anything to go by, the opening ceremony is going to be an awe inspiring event to match Beijing.
Whilst chilling out in the apartment with my team yesterday, we were treated to a surprise guest visit, from the legendary Matthew Pinsent (4 times Olympic gold medallist)! I showed Matthew and his film crew around the apartment, and we had a chance to discuss some of his former Olympic experiences. It was great to hear that in his opinion this is just about the best Olympic Village he has seen!
Ice training has continued going well, and I am feeling comfortable on the Pacific Coliseum ice. Today I will get to try out some new ice at our second training venue, the Killarney Centre.
7th Feb 10
Saturday was my first full day in the Olympic Village, and luckily it was a rest day, meaning I could spend some time exploring and getting into the Olympic spirit! We also had a chance to go into downtown Vancouver, where we were made to feel really welcome by members of the public wishing us luck for the competition, thanks Vancouver! Also thanks to Jack and Dougie, who joined me and helped out with a few interviews and photo opportunities.
After the fun of being treated like a celebrity it was time to get back down to some hard work. We made our first trip to train in the Pacific Coliseum where we will compete during the games. This was the first time we had been to the rink in 2 years, and the changes were amazing! With the bright lights and Olympic branding the Coliseum really is going to be one of the most spectacular places to compete. Also the ice conditions feel very much like Nottingham, so it was just like training at home!
6th Feb 10
First thing to say today is Happy 80th Birthday Grandad Wilf Eley. hope you have a great night, wish I could be there. Have a good one!!!
Olympic Arrival!
I have now arrived in the Vancouver Olympic Village, and it is an absolutely spectacular environment! We have been given a luxury apartment, with a panoramic view over the harbour, and overlooking BC Place which will host the opening ceremony on the 12th Feb. The village has great facilities, with everything from a huge food hall catering for athletes of every nation, to a night-club style amusements/games area which will also host live music.
The short track teams seem to be the first to arrive here, but I am looking forward to the village becoming busier as all the other sports arrive over the next few days. The food hall is a great place to catch up with the other athletes. Tonight I managed to meet with friend and ex-short tracker Ryan Bedford (USA), who will be competing in the long track here in Vancouver, he’s a crazy guy!!
5th Feb 10
Day 7 - The team and I are coming to the end of our time here in Calgary, and preparing to move to the Olympic Village in Vancouver. The training has been tough, but we have all pushed really hard, and I feel we are in great shape moving onto the Games.
I must give a massive thank you to the BOA for the fantastic set-up here in Calgary, they have made us feel really welcome, and given us excellent facilities, so thank you BOA!!
Tonight was a chance to get to know some of the other Team GB athletes better, especially the Curling teams who arrived yesterday. Media guru Adam Parsons hosted a ‘Question of Sport’ quiz night, which turned out to be great fun. My team did well, coming in a close 2nd place, but unable to defeat Dougie and his team, who were on fire! Nice one Doug!
2nd Feb 10
Day 4 in Calgary and training has stepped up. Both I and the relay team have been skating some great times in training, and this has really started to raise confidence within the team. I feel that I’m finally over the jet lag and acclimatizing well thanks to Stewy Laing’s jet lag plan. More of the Team GB athletes are starting to arrive at the hotel, creating a great team atmosphere. We have also been joined by the Canadian Short Track team who are now staying here.
31st Jan 10
I have been in Calgary at the Team GB holding camp for two days. The camp has been great so far, and we have been provided with excellent facilities. The hotel and staff have been very welcoming and the BOA (British Olympic Association) has provided us with a state of the art performance centre in the hotel for training and recovery. The BOA has looked after us so well, it’s almost like we are staying in our own hotel. Thanks guys!!
Yesterday was my Coach’s Birthday so we made Nick take an ice bath which he loved. Then last night we all when to watch the Calgary Flames (NHL ice hockey team) play the Edmonton Oilers. It was a great game the flames won 6-1 and there were even a couple of fights!
Training has been good so far, although we have mainly completed light work while we acclimatize to the time zone and recover from jet lag. We are training in The Calgary Olympic Oval, which is renowned for having the fastest short track ice in the world! I am looking forward to getting some good training done here, and heading out to Vancouver next week ready for the Olympic Games!