Sophie Muir had a real Olympic moment when she trained for the first time at the Richmond Olympic Centre outside of Vancouver.

It was not of dreaming of victory, or being on the medal dais but rather a special Australian moment.

Sophie was gliding on her second warm up lap in preparation for competition when it hit her.

“I have to admit, I saw the Australian flag flying and it just blew me away,” Muir said.

“I wasn’t skating for a moment, I was walking on air.

“It all sort of came to me, about how special it is for an Australian to be back in long track, and especially being the first ever Aussie woman to do it, it was quite emotional,” Muir recalled.

Muir skated for around 45 minutes in her first official practice and admits to feeling quite heavy in the legs.

That’s quite normal for her, and something she has learned to cope with in her brief time in the sport.

Like for athletes of any sport, finding the balance between doing too much and too little early in training is a real challenge.

Sophie will rely on the expert advice and tutoring of her coach Desly Hill to design the ideal preparation schedule.

The first task for Hill was getting Muir under control the first time on the ice of Richmond.

“My coach was out there trying to tell me to slow down because I think the adrenaline was pumping a fair bit.

“For the first session the day after a plane trip I did quite well, really all I was trying to do was shake off the cobwebs and get a bit of a puff going.”

Muir is under no illusions about the enormity of the task confronting her, but the tenacious 26-year-old is not one to hide from a challenge…and the next fortnight will be no different.

“16 months ago I’d never been on the ice and I’ve improved my time by about seven seconds in the last year or so, so anything is possible.

“Realistically a place in the top 20 would be an outstanding result for me and something that I will do everything I can in order to achieve.”

Muir is based in The Netherlands where she works alongside Hill and even her coach admits that Sophie’s journey to Vancouver is anything but orthodox.

“No, Sophie’s case is a special one, that’s for sure,” Hill laughed.

“I don’t know that I would recommend someone pick up a sport 16 months before an Olympics with the goal of qualifying.

“What it also shows is how talented an athlete Sophie is and how determined she is to make her mark in this sport.”

The Richmond Olympic Oval – purpose built for these Games is one of the truly great Olympic venues, and one that Muir hopes will bring out the best in her.

Situated about half an hours bus ride from the main Olympic Village, Richmond will be the focus for some terrific action.

“You can’t help but be impressed by this venue,” Muir said.

“The ice feels terrific underneath you and the facilities her for the competitors are the best I’ve seen anywhere.

Muir thinks that the venue had the same “feel” about it as her training base, which gives her somewhat of head start.

“A few of the other competitors were talking during warm up and after training that they didn’t like the way the ice felt on their skates, but I think it is fine. I suppose if they are thinking about it then it might become a problem for them,” Muir said.

Damian Kelly
Team Media Liaison - Vancouver