I’m writing this just before getting on our flight to Japan.
Four years of hard work are about to be put to the test.
I’m sure the nerves will come later but at the moment excitement is the biggest emotion.
I don’t know if it’s the same for everyone but heading out for my third Games feels just as good as going to my second and my first.
I can see why the likes of Sir Chris Hoy and Sir Steve Redgrave found it hard to give up!
Just saying that this is my third Olympics feels pretty special in itself.
There must be thousands of athletes who have dedicated their lives to going to one, but don’t make it.
So many people play a part in getting you on the team – from friends and family to the backroom staff we have these days.
They hold us together when we’re getting injuries and make sure we’re going there as one of the fittest teams in the world and hopefully one of the form teams as well.
We’ll be staying in Tokyo for two nights.
The plan is to just have a couple of days chilling out and getting over our jet lag and stuff like that. I’m told that we might even be getting to go to Tokyo Disney!
After that it’s on to Karuizawa on Saturday morning where the GB holding camp is.
From that moment on it’s about getting the best preparation possible. We’ve been there before so we know that everything is perfect.
We’ll be fine-tuning a few tactical and technical things and keeping ourselves ticking over physically.
We won’t be alone at the curling centre in Karuizawa. Canada, Switzerland, Japan and Sweden are all based there for their training camp.
The night before our first game on February the 14th is when the nerves will kick in, I’m sure.
That’s not a problem, though. Even the great Roger Federer said recently that the nerves never go!
It won’t take long for the habits we’ve built into our routines for years to kick in and we’ll be doing our best to enjoy it all.
The best part of being in a team with four friends is that you make memories that you can share forever.
Not long now!
