Eden was one of just 47 young athletes who were invited to attend the Athlete Summit organized by Team 2012 in London last week. The event was an opportunity for young athletes to gain vital skills that will help them in their preparations for their first Olympic and Paralympic Games in 2012.
The day long event was one of many initiatives to provide Team GB athletes (of which 75% will be first time Olympians) the best chance of success. Eden got to meet sporting stars who have already competed at an Olympic Games, to learn from their experiences, as well as hearing sound advice from sporting legends Sir Clive Woodward and Baroness Tanni Grey-Thompson. Media training was also on the agenda and Eden got chance to put theory into practice afterwards with a round of interviews on video. Team 2012 has raised over half of its £25m target which is primarily being used to support athletes, such as Eden, who are on the UK Sport’s World Performance Programme.
When asked what she got out of the day, this is what Eden had to say, “I really enjoyed the day, although it was a battle to get there through the snow. We started off with a Q&A session and we got to hear some of the amazing accounts of how people had got into sport and the journeys they’d had to take them to Olympic success.
“One of the speakers, Olympic rower Sarah Winkless who won a bronze medal at Athens, came to speak to me afterwards as she has been watching my progress. Before rowing she was a junior discuss champion, she had loads of good advice for me and I found her very inspiring.”
“I’m not sure why I was so lucky to be selected, but I’m very grateful. The support the workshops and media training gave was excellent and they served to reiterate the importance of the commitment I’m making.”
The event was a welcome highlight for Eden who has just about shaken off the illness that has besieged her since early November. Having lost over a stone in weight she’s now building up her strength and increasing her training to the level it was before. She admitted, “My throws are going really well, but I’m weaker than I was and weight training is certainly harder at the moment.” To ensure she’s back on form as soon as possible Eden’s eating a carbohydrate rich diet and five good meals a day!