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OLYMPIC
GAMES
NATIONAL GOVERNING SPORTS BODIES
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XXVIII OLYMPIC GAMES, ATHENS 2004 ABOUT Bermuda Athletes Competition Dates Times & Results Hard work, dedication and sacrifice - all are required for any athlete who wishes to excel in their sport. After years of preparation, the athletes who represented Bermuda at the 2004 Olympic Games took a range of competition experience to Athens. Some are veteran Olympians, having competed as many as three times before; for others this was their first experience of the Games. But what they all had in common was a focus on excellence, a determined spirit and a keen national pride to compete at their best for Bermuda.
Kiera Aitken - Swimming - 100M Backstroke "I first seriously set out to qualify for the Olympics in the summer of 2002. The qualifying times came out around that time, so I knew what I had to do and believed there was a real possibility of achieving the time. I had just competed in the Commonwealth Games so I was also really motivated in training by seeing all the amazing swimmers that were there and what they were able to do". When she saw her time after swimming in the 100m backstroke at the 2003 Pan Am Games in Santo Domingo, she knew she had qualified and was delighted. "Qualifying for the Olympics was a big goal for me and to achieve it felt really good. It brought me a huge step closer to my ultimate dream of competing at the Olympic Games". In preparation for the Games, a typical training week for this busy undergraduate studying Computer Science at Dalhousie University consisted of nine two-hour swim practices, two half-hour weight sessions and three half-hour dry land circuits with one day off. As she contemplated her first Olympic experience she said "My main goal in Athens is to swim a personal best time and just to put up a good race against the close competition". This she did most admirably, completing her swim in a new Bermuda record time of 1:04:37, and finishing first in her heat. Results
Peter Bromby (and crew Lee
White) - Sailing -
Star "I knew immediately upon finishing 4th in the Sydney Games that I wanted to go to Athens" says the former Bermuda Male Athlete of the Year. In fact Peter sees the Sydney Games as a watershed event for Bermuda as well as his own 33 year competitive career. "Sydney Olympics 2000 was the most significant competition for me. I believe that at this competition people recognized us as world-class sailors and that began a groundswell of support that we currently enjoy. His vast experience and
winning form also counts for the respect he enjoys among his peers in the
sailing community. He secured a place at Athens back in 2002 at the
World Sailing Championships in Los Angeles (in accordance with the long lead
time that applies in the qualification procedure for the sailing
category). All competitions he has participated in since then have
been de facto preparation for the 2004 Olympics. "I spend
approximately 12 hours a week at Mangoes Gym in Somerset as well as playing
squash whenever I can. We also go out practicing in our Star boat here
in Bermuda". Most
recently he won at the international Spa (Netherlands) and Kiel (Germany) regattas.
Ranked third in the world going in to the Athens' regatta, Peter and crew
Lee White suffered a disastrous string of bad luck in the first half, and
despite achieving first, third, fourth and sixth place finishes in the
second half of the competition, his dream of winning a medal at these Games
was not to be. Results
It's been a long road from his first competition at around the age of six - an Iron Kids event where he placed second "by one second" - through to his first international race aged fourteen at the US Junior Sprint Championships and then on to numerous overseas and national races. Among those competitions he remembers the 2002 Junior World Championships in Cancun Mexico as a significant, closely fought race which saw him finishing in third place just three seconds behind the winner. It is that intensity of competition experience already achieved that he took with him to compete in the Olympic Games for the first time. He says that training
took him from 4-5 hour rides, 2 hour runs and 6-7km swimming early in his
schedule to starting "to shorten the amount of time training and
concentrate more on the quality and speed, with the final few weeks leading
into a big race it is more about maintaining your health and resting for
race day". Because of the unpredictability of his event he
approached the Games with an open mind. Before the Games he commented:
"I can honestly say I
have no idea of a realistic goal to aim for. In triathlon with three
sport disciplines, and the middle being the cycle, it is so hard to know how
a race will turn out". Tyler in fact ran the race of his
life. 42nd out of the water, he completed the race in 35th position
out of a total of 50 top triathletes, beating many of the world's top ranked
competitors including 18th ranked Martin Krnavek. Tyler's coach, Greg
Hopkins, described his performance as superb, especially considering the
quality of the field. Tyler at 21 competing with triathletes averaging
ages between their late 20s and early 30s has already expressed interest in
the 2008 Olympic Games in Beijing. Having suffered two bouts of
illness prior to the Games in Athens he is confident that he could be
"faster and fitter" next time around. Results
Paula Lewin (and crew Peta
Lewin and Christine Patton) - Sailing -
Yngling She attended university at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology where she sailed on both the women's and varsity sailing team. She was awarded all-American for each sailing year. Paula represented Bermuda at the 1992 and 1996 Olympic Games in the Europe dinghy with her best finish in 1996 of 13th place. Paula continued her sailing career in the sport of match racing and was ranked number one in the world three years running. Despite achieving two fourth
places and a sixth place in the Yngling Sailing competition, Paula, her twin sister Peta and new crew member Christine Patton were unable
to reach their true form at Athens. Results
Tim Collins - Equestrian -
Three-Day Eventing Tim has placed 14th at the very challenging Four Star Badminton three-day event, and competed at the World Championships in 1994. Tim and his horse Delton Magna qualified to go to Athens by successfully competing in a CCI*** event at Punchestown, Ireland, and CIC*** events in Rome and Lisbon. In his final competition before the Games, at International Event Aston le Walls in England, he and Delton came sixth, with a dressage score of 32.9 and clear cross country and showjumping rounds. Delton Magna is a 16.2hh 13 year old bay 3/4 Thoroughbred gelding sired by Graf Magna, and owned by Michael Collins. After a disappointing start in the dressage phase Tim and Delton went on in determined style to complete the demanding cross country phase with a clear round and by completion of their showjumping round on the final day Tim and his mount finished a very creditable 36th place out of a total of 75 starters. Results
Katura Horton-Perinchief -
Diving Katura graduated from the University of Texas in May with a BA in French with honours and a minor in biology (pre-med). She is fluent in French and Spanish. She will attend George Washington University in Washington DC in the Fall where she will pursue a Masters in Public Health before going on to medical school. Achievements while at UT: Represented Bermuda:
Xavier James - Track &
Field Xavier James, competing at his first Olympics, set out to beat the previous Bermuda Olympic Record in the men's 100meters of 10.63 seconds set by Dennis Trott in Montreal in 1976. He achieved his goal, completing in 10.40 seconds, pitting his skills against winner of his heat Commonwealth and World champion Kim Collins of St. Kitts-Nevis. Results |
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Tyler Butterfield -
Triathlon
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