KEY POINTS:
If you're the best in the world at your sport and you're heading for your first Olympics, who can you turn to for advice? We offered Olympic novice and number one ranked BMX rider Sarah Walker the chance to ask Olympic champion triathlete Hamish Carter for some wise words.
Walker: As an athlete what is the difference between a world champs and the Olympics?
Carter: I think in the simplest possible way, from my point of view winning the Olympics seems to be for life. It just seems to go on and on forever and for people like Sir Murray Halberg or John Walker it's who they become as a person and it's their life. The world champs is something that kind of expires after a year. In terms of competing, you are more desperate at the Olympics really. But fundamentally nothing changes, that's the thing: it's still what you've always done. So it's a matter of keeping a lid on it and not treating it as a totally different event. It's very much what you've always done. There's a huge difference after the race is over. But the key to racing is you need to have that calmness of mind to be able to focus on the job and not get too emotional.
Walker: What is the best attitude to go into the Olympics with?
Carter: I think there are four things: relax, enjoy, focus, and then go like hell. Typically people get it around the wrong way. They tend to go like hell and then they can't focus and then it all goes to custard. You've got to take a step back before you can take a step forward, particularly at the Olympics. Try and have the confidence to slow down a bit and relax and enjoy the moment and then as you get close to your event start to focus on it. To bring the best out of yourself you have to be relaxed and calm, you can't be totally wound up. It's different for everyone but it's about having a presence of mind or calmness. Winning the Olympics is about being clinically focused and doing the job very well but also extracting a whole lot of extra emotion when you need it. You need to be able to focus on the strategic parts of the race cleanly and not get carried away. It's a real balancing act.
Walker: In the days leading up to your race, what were you doing?
Carter: The most important thing is to enjoy your taper and enjoy the fact that all the work is done and really just enjoy the short time that you spend as an Olympian - two weeks and it's all over. So it's really worthwhile stopping every now and then and looking around and taking it all in. In the first few days I was in Athens I was pretty stressed out. I went through a little bit of a mental breakdown and then I came out the other side of it realising that I needed to stop and actually enjoy the moment in the village. I was never going to be there again and it's something which 99 per cent of all athletes never get to achieve so you want to actually stop and enjoy your time as an Olympic athlete. Most people go to the Olympic Games and walk away from it without having had the confidence to enjoy themselves and they end up being a bit pissed off they didn't. Stop and take it in a bit. You're much more likely to race well.
Walker: On the starting line, what was going through your mind?
Carter: On the startline you need to understand that you can't control the result because you can't control the people you're racing against. So you need to let that go. But you need to be ready to die for what you want. That gives you more a calmness of mind that doesn't take away your determination to do anything to win. You've just got to separate those two parts: you simply are prepared to die for what you want, but you don't necessarily have any control over the result. In other words, I wouldn't think about the result but get ready to do anything to go as hard as you need to go for what you want. So you're basically focusing on what you're going to do.
Walker: At what point did you realise you could win a gold medal?
Carter: I don't think you ever realise it, and that takes care of itself anyway. You don't need to worry about that. If you think about winning gold it's not a good thing. Don't think about it.
Walker: How did your life change after the Olympic Games?
Carter: I don't think that's of any consequence for you as an athlete. It's different for every person and every situation. Again, that will be what it is. It's not really part of the story. That's what it becomes but this is about going to compete and nothing else. Concentrate on what you've got to do.
Herald: Thanks, Hamish. Do you have any other advice for Sarah about how to handle the pressure of going into her first Olympics as the number-one ranked athlete?
Carter: I just think in an environment like that everyone wants to win so badly, they often defeat themselves. I think you should smile and have fun but when you get to race, do everything it takes. Then you can be proud of your result. Keep a smile on your face and look forward to an enormous challenge which is what it is, it's nothing else. It's a really big challenge and something you should really look forward to.
