I may have missed out on the Olympic vibe but something I am not missing out on is the Paralympics. The excitement I felt for Team GB has only deepened with the arrival of the Paralympics. So imagine my surprise and delight when my wonderful friend presented the hubby and I with tickets to the Paralympics Opening Ceremony! Not only did I get to finally see the Olympic Park, I was really part of the magic.
Unprepared as we were for the event (the call came in last Wednesday at 11am, a few hours before kickoff) I am unashamed to say that not only did I pop out at lunch for a Supermarket Sweep-esque attempt at buying warm clothes, we also had to buy matching Team GB jumpers. It would have been rude not to.
So there we were, the Woolfs on tour: sporting Team GB jumpers, eating mascot shaped chocolate bars and sipping over priced official Paralympics water. It literally couldn’t be better than that - until the show started. The event was, simply put, spectacular. The entertainment was vibrant, the fireworks dazzling and most of all the athletes and performers were truly awe inspiring. What better impetus did I need to motivate my lazy body than watching the pages of the 1948 Universal Declaration of Human Rights being marched across the stadium? What could possible ebb me on more than watching Royal Marine Joe Townsend carry the Paralympics torch into the Stadium on a zip wire? As it turns out, each event that has taken place since then and will take place over the next few days.
I am constantly amazed and delighted by the determination and spirit of the athletes – swimmers, cyclists and blade runners just to name a few. Ludwig Guttmann’s idea of using sport in the recovery of paralysed individuals has enabled disabled athletes worldwide to become the sporting heroes they truly are.
If ever I needed a kick up the bottom here it is. Who am I to complain about going the distance now? So it is with great pleasure that I can admit to my challenge of the week. I have decided to (OK, mildly bullied into) trying to shave 10 minutes off my 10k time. At the moment I have set myself a time of 1h 7 minutes. My lovely cousin and running pal has deemed this a little slow (in my defence I refer back to my aforementioned chicken legs) and as such this week we will be running 10k in under an hour. Wish me luck!
No comments:
Post a Comment