Day 1/2: Travel Day
Just touched down in Fukuoka via Tokyo. A light lunch, a quick visit to the local supermarket prior to the first session this afternoon.
We are staying Manabi no Yado Education Centre in Fukuoka,similar to the AIS but we had to watch the manager take through how to make our beds!!
Teams in great spirits after the long day of travelling!!
Day 2 PM:
We had the Saturday pm session at the Fukuoka University Pool…great facility! Head Coach Shannon Rollason led off the session with a chat with the athletes and coaches around the benefits of a positive attitude and support especially in small teams. He also talked about the calibre of Japan Open…tough meet but creates opportunities.
Another interesting custom is to change shoes prior to going on pool deck.
Day 3: Fukuoka
Training this morning was at the Fukuoka City Sogo Nishi Municipal Pool…and what a pool…awesome facility and at the time it was getting set up for a Junior meet. They have the Seiko Blocks that have the Backstroke wedges attached the back of the block…very efficient. As you can imagine Seiko is a major player in all things sport here and it was also great to see Mizuno as a sponsor.
This afternoon we have a cultural experience and a chance to do some sightseeing.
This afternoon we had a chance for a cultural experience and to do some sightseeing. We went to the Kyushu National Museum and the wonderful surrounding gardens and shrines. It was great to be out in the fresh air…amazing area – lots of people with plenty of the local cuisines on offer. Back at the hotel we attended a Japanese Pottery class…a lot of fun before everyone knuckles down for their final prep into the Japan Open that starts next Friday.
Day 4: Fukuoka
We were back at the Fukuoka University Pool this morning…the University Team were training, and both the coaches and swimmers were very welcoming. They had up to 6 coaches on deck – the men trained together as did the women (with their own coaching staff). We may use AutoCoach in Australia, but they used a slightly different system – it sounded a beep every 10 seconds with all the coaches saying 2, 1, Ikimasu in unison!
Post training while the swimmers were in the gym (just off pool deck) the NSW coaching staff had a meeting with the Japanese coaches (the Japanese treated our coaches to coffee at Starbucks)…they are very keen to learn from our coaches particularly around technique.
A good morning for all! We are back at the University Pool again for the afternoon session.
This afternoon’s session went well with some suited-up swims for some of the groups. All groups have been building up nicely to some fast work since we arrived on Saturday. We have made some changes to the schedule to try to place the swimmers in the best possible position come Friday…some great coach discussions have taken place since arriving led by Head Coach Shannon Rollason.
Tomorrow, we travel to Tokyo and swim in the competition pool tomorrow afternoon.
Day 5: Travel Day - Fukuoka to Tokyo
It doesn’t matter if you travel for 1 hour or 5 hours…it’s still takes most of the day. Arrived at our hotel at 3:30pm then walked to the pool for the afternoon session. Unfortunately the competition pool wasn’t available so we trained in the warm up pool - if you like your pools this is a cracker!!
Looking forward to seeing the team train tomorrow in the comp pool!
Day 6: Tokyo
The team trained in the competition pool for the first time…one of the best complexes I’ve ever seen! The team had the luxury of having the pool all to themselves…our hosts have been very accommodating. Had a great dinner last night at a restaurant called Jonathan’s! The team enjoyed being served by the robot waiters!!
One day to go before the competition starts!
GO THE MIGHTY BLUES!
