July 3, 2008 – Olympic Hopeful slot

Hello All,

As you may already know, I’m the Olympic Alternate for the 2008 Olympic Games in Beijing, China. I fought at the Olympic Trials in Las Vegas and went 3-1. I fought 2 matches to get into the finals against my teammate Sayaka and disappointingly, lost. I then had to fight back to earn the alternate spot.

Although the USA doesn’t send the alternates to compete, I am 1 of 6 athletes selected to go experience the games with the Olympic team so that we will be better prepared for participating in events of that magnitude ourselves. We are officially titled "Olympic Hopefuls" for the 2012 games in London. It’ll be an awesome experience to be at the games and be in the atmosphere. I’m totally excited! And to top it off, two of my friends from the U23 team –  Marti Malloy and Michael Eldred were among the 6 athletes chosen to go. It’s a great experience AND I get to go with my friends. Watch out China, here we come!

So, while I’m there I’m supposed to have internet in the dorms at Beijing Normal University (about 1/2 mile away from the Olympic Village). Therefore, I’m going to be keeping a journal and hopefully post pictures while I’m there. So keep checking back for updates.

-zài jiàn (good bye in Chinese … I think)