Rio Olympic and Paralympic Games - Games time!

by Mat Belcher and Will Ryan on 26 Jul 2016 Rio Olympic and Paralympic Games - Here we are. Wow, doesn’t the time go quickly. We are on the eve of the big Olympic event and we are feeling good. We have been busy training hard over the past month, in northern Germany and on the Olympic waters the past two weeks. It is amazing to see the transformation ‘Marina de Gloria’ has undergone over the years with everything almost fully operational. (I suppose they can’t leave it any longer!).

Will and I will depart our European bases tomorrow after a short rest with friends and family to come into Rio for our tenth and last time. We have spent so much time away from our homes over the last few years which was not always easy. But all of this has been to help our preparations for the big event. We are looking forward to big event and hope to make all the sacrifices worthwhile. Rio will deliver some challenges as many of you will know from various news reports. It is a very complicated venue, challenging environment, and not to mention the most diverse race conditions you can train for but we are looking forward to the challenges and feel ready to take it on.

When Will and I embarked on our first training camp after London 2012, Rio seemed so far away. However, looking back on what we have achieved together we couldn’t be prouder. It has been a long campaign since London2012 for Will, Victor and I - a campaign that we are very proud of. As a new team we came together matched with the same determination, hunger and commitment to Olympic success that has driven us to perfection over the past years. However, as Malcolm Page once said, ‘you would trade every World or European title you have ever won for an Olympic gold’. We are looking forward to the challenge and hope to do you proud. As we have developed as a team, so have our competitors. It will be a tough competition but we are going into the games knowing that we couldn’t have done any more.

Many of you have followed our campaign since day one. On behalf of Will and I, we cannot thank you enough for your encouraging words and support through the highs and lows. Together we have achieved a lot.

Once we arrive into Rio over the next days, we will try and update you via our Facebook page. But as you know, our focus will be on racing. So if we are a bit quieter, just enjoy the show while we will be doing our best to put together a good performance.

Finer details of Rio 2016:

• 5th August - Opening Ceremony
• 10th August - Racing starts for 470Men, with two races scheduled each day.
• 13th and 16th August - Reserve days but probably will be racing!
• 17th August - Medal Race day!!
• 21st August - Closing Ceremony

It’s now time to strap on the Green and Gold and take on the world.