With only 9 short days until the start of Olympic Trials in Montreal, I thought now was as good of time as any to post an update about what I’ve been up to over the past few months and how I’m feeling heading into Olympic Trials.

I had hoped that I would be writing to all of you at the beginning of December telling you how well training has been going since I came back from Europe the end of October. Unfortunately, this hasn’t been the case. Before I left for Europe I was feeling like I was on the verge of getting sick. While my body usually seems to be able to fight off any kind of sickness within a few days, this time I was not so lucky.

I am now two thirds done my European World Cup Circuit, which means as we speak I am currently in Berlin, Germany! After an early flight from Moscow (we left the hotel at 4am), and a much needed three-hour nap, I now feel alert enough to write to all of you and let you know how things are going. There are eleven swimmers here representing Canada (along with an additional six support staff/coaches) including two of my teammates from back home Mike Brown and Paul Kornfeld.

I’ve been back in the pool training for about a month since my mini summer vacation after competing at the 2011 World Aquatic Championships in Shanghai in July. I placed 12th in the 200 IM and helped Canada advance to the final and secure a spot in the 4x100 freestyle relay at the Olympic Games next summer. I had the longest summer vacation in 7 years…a whole 3 weeks to enjoy being a regular 22 year old before it was back to the grind of training for an Olympic season.

This past summer while enjoying a little break from my usual routine as an athlete, I started thinking about how I could involve more people in my journey towards the 2012 Olympics Games in London. And then I thought what better way to reach people then through a website! I am very excited that after a couple months of hard work by my web designer and fellow athlete Michelle Bartleman (michelle@mediacrate.ca check her out she is awesome) it is now up and running!