World Cup, Winter Wonderlands and Winterberg: Athlete Blog Watch

The road to the Games is a long one and no one knows that better than the athletes themselves. On their personal blogs, they share the thrill of victory, the agony of their feet and the day to day living, training and perseverance that go into being a top athlete.

Here are a few of the Canadian athlete blog posts that inspired us this week:

Biathlete Zina Kocher sums up her race and talks about having her family at the finish line in her post World Cup Week 2:

Last week I had a fairly successful World Cup #2 in Hochfilzen, Austria. Friday in the Sprint, I finished 18^th with 1 penalty. There is ALWAYS something that an athlete is dissatisfied with or at least acknowledges the requirement for continued improvement. After my race, I was satisfied with many aspects of the race, and yet deeply frustrated that I had missed my very last shot! If only…

My wonderful parents, along with some fellow Kocher fans from Germany came to this World Cup and definitely helped me cruise up the final hill to the finish with their loud cheering!

In Germany to attend her World Cup races, bobsleigh team member Heather Moyse talks about her great race performance and her international travel mishaps trying to get home for the holidays in her post Off-Ice Adventures:

There are still three more races for the World Cup circuit, with the Olympic team not being announced until after two of those. So much can still happen between now and then, and that means that I can’t take anything for granted. I am extremely happy about how things have been going, and excited about ending the first half [of the season] with a push record, a track record, and a gold medal, but…… I mustn’t get ahead of myself!

Finally, alpine skier Kelly McBroom talks about the heartbreak of her ski teammates who were injured in races and training this month - having gone through the same thing last year, she can empathize. She also shares her stunning vacation photos from a trip up to Lake O'Hara in her post Elizabeth Parker Hut:

I injured myself almost one year ago, I am back on snow, I have gone through the rehab and the painful moments and I have been through it. I feel very strongly for all of my injured teammates because I know what they're going through and I know what lies ahead and how hard it really is being on the sidelines. It sucks, plain and simple. Especially now, with the Olympics so close. It just breaks my heart.

There is nothing really one can say, or one can do to make it better. It has to come from within. My advise is; push, fight and keep fighting even when you don't think you can push anymore. It takes drive, dedication and optimism to get to where you want to be and it will be a long road, but one that will end and you will get through it.

We'll be highlighting Canadian athlete blog posts every week, so stay tuned!