Olympic legend has put me in the zone

WOW. Now, I am not worried at all.

In fact, bring on the London Triathlon.

It is not every day you get advice from an Olympic champion. Sorry, Olympic legend.

But when Ian ‘Thorpedo’ Thorpe popped into the Nottingham Evening Post the other day (top right), he was only too happy to offer me a few words of wisdom about how to treat the next couple of weeks before the big day.

And all those insecurities and fears about the swim, bike and run in London evaporated when Thorpe told me to, well, stop being stupid.

Enjoy the day. It’s party time.

And when a five-time Olympic swimming champ offers a word or two in your ear, you make sure you’re listening.

“My personal opinion,” he explained. “Your training should always have been harder than what the competition is.

“The competition itself is the time to celebrate all of that hard work that you have put in.

“The early mornings, the times when you come home and can barely stay up to eat your meal before you go to bed just to wake up and do it all again the next day.

“It is just about enjoying the competition, don’t be frightened of it.

“Think of that when you are competing, remember the hard work you put in to get there and remember how you got through it, got back up, got back on the bike and kept on going.

“Remember how you kept running even though you wanted to stop and keep all of those reminders there because it will be worthwhile.

“It is one of those things where it is an accomplishment for yourself rather than just going in there and looking at where you come, what the result was.

“The hard work in the lead up is as important as what the end result is.”

And with those words of wisdom, I offered him a shake of the hand, hopped on the train and got back to my training.

But instead of fear, the Thorpedo has instilled a sense of excitement in me.

August 2 cannot come soon enough.

To follow Stevie's progress on Twitter, click here or for the full story behind Stevie taking up the London Triathlon challenge, click here

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American-based sports giant Under Armour have backed Stevie in his quest to complete the London Triathlon and raise cash for When You Wish Upon A Star by agreeing to become his official sponsor.They have provided him with a whole range of their latest hi-tech training gear to help in all weathers, and a new tri-suit for the race itself. For more information visit http://www.underarmour.com/