 Vicki has found a few distractions to keep her busy in Macau - namely Jenga!
Gateshead-born 400m runner Victoria Barr is part of the Great Britain team for the 2008 Olympic Games in Beijing. She has agreed to complete a diary for BBC Sport on her progress, experiences and thoughts during the games. Here is her third diary entry, and with the events looming ever closer, Vicki has been busy in training.
Wednesday, 13 August Hi everyone, Sorry about the delay in my third entry. I bet you all thought I had been blown away in the typhoon! Ha ha. It actually wasn't that bad, just a bit windy and raining, a 'typical day in Newcastle'! So what have I been up to? Once the weather got better we were allowed down to the track. My main training has been done with some of the other 400m girls, which is great for me as it's a good opportunity to learn more and also see how I compare with them. It's obviously a little bit harder to do certain sessions out due to the heat and humidity but the coaches and support staff have been great with giving advice.  | The last ice bath I had turned into an ice fight where the boys thought it would be funny to splash the girls... We have to have fun at some point after training hard! |
The physio team have also put together what look like deckchairs for when you finish the session, the only difference being that the arms have pockets filled with ice. It's a great way of getting your body temperature back to normal after a long time in the heat. Once I finish my track sessions it's straight from the chair to the ice baths. Basically it's a huge jacuzzi filled with ice that everyone piles into after training. This is usually where the fun begins, as you can imagine - it is absolutely freezing - so it's either jump straight in or slowly edge in. The last ice bath I had turned into an ice fight where the boys thought it would be funny to splash the girls and then (not naming any names, you know who you are - Ha ha!) thought it would be a good idea to turn on the cold hose pipe and soak everyone. We have to have fun at some point after training hard! Princess Anne came to visit on Tuesday, while I had a weights session and I was very privileged to actually meet and speak to her. She was very down to earth and I almost forgot she was royalty at one point.  The view from Vicki's room |
We had a general conversation about the facilities and how I was finding Macau and then she was on her way. So what do I do when I'm not training? Well so far it's been PSP, pool, Jenga and DVDs. Pool is not my speciality but I have actually got better since being out here and have become quite competitive with the boys, putting some of them to shame! I also have been to visit the Venetian, which is the world's fourth largest hotel. Inside it has a hotel along with a huge casino, plenty of designer shops and a river running through with gondolas. What's next? Tomorrow I fly from Macau to Beijing and arrive at the athletes village and this is where it will all begin. Some of the GB athletes whose events are sooner are already there and I have heard that the village is impressive and the weather isn't as humid. It also has a burger bar which is FREE. Obviously I won't visit there until after competing. All in all I am very excited for this next stage. I will update everyone once I get to Beijing. Bye for now. Vic x
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