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By British Cycling's Larry Hickmott For the last two days I had the honour of being among the best athletes in the World when I visited the Great Britain Olympic Track Cycling team who are in their final week in the Newport Olympic holding camp. There, I met up with the Great Britain cyclists who during the Athens Olympics will be on our TV screens battling for medals on the Athens Velodrome. It's very rare for the public to see anything more than the racing and the presentation of medals but during this brief visit I have been able to see just how dedicated and hungry these athletes are for medals at the Olympics and the team effort behind them to try and ensure they get the best support in the world to make those medal winning efforts count. After five medals at the World Track Championships and with four medals at the Sydney Olympics, the Great Britain Cycling team have a fabulous record on the banked Velodromes around the World. Prior to departing for another, Athens, and the 2004 Olympics, the team are staying at the Celtic Manor in Newport where I have come for a few days to see the team prepare.
Above: Andrea Wooles and Bryan Steel relax in the luxury surroundings of the Celtic Manor's sunken lounge. For those wondering why Newport (Wales) and not Cyprus where the BOA (British Olympic Assoc.) have their own holding camp, its because they the riders, needed to be near a track and Wales have an Olympic quality track which opened a year ago, perfect for the team to get together at to train on and bond before the biggest sporting competition in the World. Be in no doubt that the common consensus among the riders was how good this holding camp was for them. Close to home, great support and few distractions. Anyone who has been to the Celtic Manor knows that its five stars are a sign of the luxury you get and as soon as you arrive, you realise this is no normal hotel. More than one rider described it as the best they have stayed in in Great Britain. This is where the riders can relax and chill out in between training sessions on the roads and track around Newport. Whilst here, they can enjoy the resorts luxury trappings such as a heated (very heated) swimming pool, spas and much more. But when it comes to work, down the road at the Newport Velodrome, that too has many of the facilities the riders need to prepare properly for Athens. Like a heated Gym, other heated rooms for doing acclimatisation work, and the track of course.
Victoria Pendleton leads the sprint group of Chris Hoy, Jason Queally and Craig Maclean round the track during a warm up before a session in the heated velodrome. Long Days in the Heat An hour or so later, the lounge chairs in the sunken lounge were occupied by Andrea Wooles, known according to World Keirin Champion Jamie Staff as the 'Scientist' and a few feet from Andrea was team pursuiter Bryan Steel, preparing for his fourth Olympics. All were decked out in their Olympic clothing but none showing any sign of nerves prior to what is a huge competition for them all. It didn't really feel a lot different to the atmosphere in Sydney and Melbourne holding camps except, because the hotel has such great facilities, you did see more of the riders as they escaped their rooms for a different part of the hotel to chill out in. The team even have their own lounge where they can come together and chill out in front of the TV with the teams food and drink all close at hand. When I first arrived, Endurance Team manager John Herety showed me about and we toured the floor where the team were to be based for two weeks having arrived on the first of August. It was impressive and the only glitch was if you tried to escape the floor at 'rush hour', it was nigh on impossible as the hotels three lifts couldn't cope. One morning, Paul Manning and I vainly searched for a set of stairs which were later pointed out by hotel staff. It must be said that at the same time I was there, a major festival was on in Newport which was why the hotel was very busy at certain times I guess. Later that evening, as a number of riders enjoyed a DVD SciFi movie on the large screen TV in the lounge, the staff looking after them gathered for a meeting chaired by GB Performance Director Dave Brailsford in the cool breeze on the balcony to discuss the days events and look forward to the next day. There is no 9 to 5 in this job that is for sure! For riders and staff alike, the day started a lot earlier than I expected. Riders we know need a lot of rest to recover from the intense efforts that are put in leading up to a major competition but whilst I was there, riders would start to gather as early as 8am for breakfast in a special room set aside for the team before heading off for the track or out onto the roads for a morning training session.
The staff get together late at night to review the days training and look at what's on the plan for the next day in the lounge room which has been allocated to the team. The only break came around midday when they again assembled back at the hotel for lunch. Well many of the team did but not all. On the final day I was there, the mechanics Mark Ingham, Sandy Gilchrist, and Alex Jaffrey seemed to be well set for a long day at the track. Whilst I was in their 'office', Sandy was preparing Rob Hayles Sports Institute bike using details kept on his computer, Mark was running around with skewers in hand as riders arrived to set up there bikes up on Cat Eye computer trainers and Alex carefully preparing tyres for sticking onto the many many wheels needed to keep the team rolling. In another part of the Newport Velodrome complex, a heated Gym saw the sprinters making good use of the facilities in the heated room. Helping them was GB Team Coach Iain Dyer, on hand to advise, motivate and ensure the riders don't risk injury. The weight lifting coach Dave Clark was there also, lap top computer up and running keeping track of the different weight lifting exercises and the riders personal bests as well helping the riders set up the bars for lifts. Sprint Manager Shane Sutton was there too, rushing about from room to room as normal in an effort to take care of the needs of his riders and staff. Also there, Exercise Physiologist Andrea Wooles, was looking after the riders to prevent them from over heating and on hand to offer advice in what were very difficult conditions for the riders and staff. This was without doubt a team effort and although the team has a good balance of support staff to rider ratio, with as many as four different areas in the track in use by different riders, the staff were never standing still for very long. The team Masseur's who take care of everything from massage to a riders food and drink , were especially kept on the run because in the heated conditions -- even the track centre had the heaters on - drink was very important as was food. Whether it was recovery drinks, water, hydration drinks and so on, the bottles in the large GB ice box were in constant demand. And for those thinking that a team as well looked after as this one is, feeds itself on special food, not a bit of it as Andrea emphasised the need for natural food as a source of the necessary nutrition to recover from the training. An area which she advises the riders on when required. Proof of this if needed, could be seen in the riders lounge and on the tables in the gym, track centre and heat room were fruit, Lucozade gels and cereal bars that you can buy over the counter in supermarkets and elsewhere. Away from the Newport velodrome, the endurance team were having a break from the track which meant that any staff not working at the track were out on the road with them. Staff such as Endurance coach Simon Jones taking notes of the efforts being made in Time Trials and the group rides. Rides which meant suitable roads had to be found and mapped out for the riders to use. The push for Athens is certainly a team effort and the cutting edge care of the riders in many areas is just so evident when you're able to witness everything close up. Only Hard Work Will Do to become Champion Everyone was working hard but there is one effort which will live me with for a long time to come. I have been fortunate enough to see the World Kilometre Champion (2002/2004) Chris Hoy both at the Worlds and in training before but never like I did yesterday. Chris Hoy was on the track with heaters on full and about to start a series of efforts that would leave him in a state I have never seen riders in before. A few feet away from me, was Olympic Kilometre Champion (and team Captain) Jason Queally who was able to give me a detailed description of this type of effort based on his own personal experience with it. The session started easy enough with Chris and the sprint team on training duty that day taking to the track behind the motor bike at around 2pm. In the stands was a rather vocal Welsh crowd cheering them on and after a warm up, all the riders settled down to start there various routines. Jason Queally and Victoria Pendleton for example doing short sharp efforts, ensuring they recovered fully between these maximal efforts. Craig Maclean was there too, putting in a steady effort in the tri bars position but the rider who made the most impact on me was Chris Hoy. After a few flying efforts, he started two sets of four 500 metre efforts with only three laps rest in between. He had spoken of them in the interview the night before and the words didn't mean a great deal in terms of describing just how bad an effort this is for a rider to do. No wonder he had said during the interview they were not efforts he looked forward to. Afterwards, I could see why. On the track, Chris looked in control but as he explained later, it's not the first 500 metre effort that hurts, it's the last one as he digs ever so deep to post 30 second flying 500 metre times. Afterwards, you can hear Chris as he comes around, deep in oxygen debt and obviously hurting - badly, more than he does after the kilo event itself. Worse is to come. The heat training was having its effect and making the whole hurting process worse and as Chris slumped into a chair, the pain on his face is clear to see and he's 'out of it' for a good 10 or 15 minutes. I looked at Chris, and then at other staff and riders sitting nearby. Silence. Everyone knows just how much this effort has hurt and it's almost embarrassing to look at Chris in that state. His eyes closed, and his face telling the story of the pain being inflicted as the lactic build up takes it toll on his whole body. Believe me, these riders deserve all the accolades they get when success comes their way because it doesn't come easy and this was proof of that. After a period of 20 minutes as other riders took to the track for their efforts, Chris was soon back to his normal self and getting ready for a second dose of the extreme pain that is self inflicted but a pain that once the effort has been made takes control of Chris for an agonising period of 15 minutes. And its not just Chris who puts himself through the mill I might add. On day 1, Jamie Staff and Ross Edgar (as well as Chris) were also on the track and for what seemed like an eternity in the heat, they got onto the track for hour after hour and gave it their all time after time.
Performance director Dave Brailsford brings the riders and staff come together on Saturday morning in the lounge for a team talk with the Olympics only a week away.
Out on the road, the endurance riders were also not hanging around and reports came back of a through and off session at 47kph plus which Bryan Steel the day before had described as going to be a 'steady' road ride! Other scenes of riders crucifying their bodies came in another heated room where Emma Davies, on her time trial bike on a Cat Eye computer trainer, making two 3 minute race pace efforts that had sweat pouring out of her at what I thought was an alarming rate. Andrea however was alongside helping Emma so she was in good hands as Andrea read out the numbers that had Emma punching the air with delight afterwards. Off the bike, the training for the sprinters made the days long and tiring too. On day one, Chris Hoy matched his personal best in the weights room in a morning session which preceded his time on the track in the afternoon. The same for Jamie Staff and Ross Edgar and the next day, Victoria Pendleton did the same, gym in the morning and track in the afternoon. And whilst the riders did their bit putting in the hard work and coming up with 'numbers' that had everyone pleased, not far away were GB staff helping them to recover. Staff like GB Team Physiotherapist Gavin Thomas and the teams masseur's in Newport Gavin King and John Evans. I may have only spent two days at the hotel and track, but the amount of work going on was amazing. Only able to be in one place at a time, I never even saw all the work, only that at the velodrome. Even whilst I was asleep, staff such as Sandy Gilchrist who has seen more Olympics than most, was working through the night to ensure everything was kept on track for the riders. So far so good. Sure, there have been problems but when they happen, everyone pulls together to try and resolve things as quickly as possible and whilst you can sense the tension a week away from the biggest sporting competition in the world, there is also a positive feeling in the air from a team who have been there, done it and have the medals to prove it. The opening ceremony for the Olympics is now only a week away and when our cyclists step onto the track in Athens, let no-one be in any doubt - these will be the best prepared athletes of any sport or nation - and medals will result and deservedly so because at the end of the day, working for Team GB is not a job -- it's a way of life for riders and staff alike. On behalf of everyone at British Cycling, members and staff, I would like to wish them all the very best of luck and also thank the riders and staff for their friendship and co-operation in working on these features. Note: I'll have interviews with riders and staff coming up here on britishcycling.org,uk in the lead up to the Olympics. Sydney 2000 Medals Team Pursuit - Bronze -- (Bryan Steel, Jonathon Clay, Rob Hayles, Chris Newton, Bradley Wiggins, Paul Manning) Team Sprint -- Silver -- (Chris Hoy, Jason Queally, Craig Maclean) Womens Pursuit: -- Bronze -- Yvonne McGregor Kilometer: Jason Queally -- GOLD
GREAT BRITAIN OLYMPIC TEAM IN BREIF Rider (potential events) Oli Beckingsale (Mens Mountain Biking) Nicole Cooke (Women's Road Race) Steve Cummings: (Team Pursuit) Stuart Dangerfield: (Men's Road Time Trial) Emma Davies: (Womens Individual Pursuit/Womens Points Race) Ross Edgar: (Sprint, Keirin) Roger Hammond: (Mens Road Race) Rob Hayles: (Mens Individual Pursuit/Team Pursuit/Madison) Rachel Heal: (Womens Road Race) Chris Hoy: (Kilo/Team Sprint) Jeremy Hunt: (Mens Road Race) Liam Killeen: (Mens Mountain Biking) Craig MacLean: (Kilo/Team Sprint) Paul Manning: (Mens Individual Pursuit/Team Pursuit) Chris Newton: (Team Pursuit/Mens Points Race) Victoria Pendleton: (500TT/Womens Sprint) Jason Queally: (Kilo/Team Sprint) Jamie Staff: (Kilo, Team Sprint, Keirin) Bryan Steel: (Team Pursuit) Sara Symington: (Womens Road Race) Charly Wegalius: (Mens Road Race) Bradley Wiggins: (Individual Pursuit/Team Pursuit/Madison) Julian Winn: (Mens Road Race) The Great Britain Cycling Team for the Paralympics Tandems
(click for bios) Aileen
McGlynn - 22.06.73/Glasgow Ian
Sharpe - 27.10.70/Ramsey, Isle of Man Solos Gary Williams - 05.03.68/Bickerstaffe, Lancs
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