Balatonfured, Budapest and Bronze

Balatonfured, Budapest and Bronze

Jo Mitchinson Team Aqua Sphere UK Athlete

 I travelled out to the World Masters Championships in Hungary with my coach, Magda. I had hoped that she'd be the competent traveller out of the 2 of us. My ability to navigate successfully from one country to another is, at best sporadic. On this occasion once we arrived in Budapest we then had to get across the city, onto a train and travel 150km in the right direction to Balatonfured. We also had 2 different accommodations to find (one at the lake & one in Budapest),  accreditation to collect and maps to follow. So, when I over shot the pre-booked (and very clearly signed in hindsight!) airport parking , exiting altogether and having to have another go at finding the Orange Zone, I really needed her to say something other than "I do that all the time- I'm rubbish at travelling". 

Duna Arena - Home of the 17th FINA World Champs 2017

Having landed in Budapest, we got a taxi across the city to the station & sat in jeans and tops, with 'just in case it's cold' jumpers around our waists in 34 degree heat, intending to wait like this for 2 hours until the next train. Within 30 minutes we were sweltering, so luggage was unceremoniously unpacked, shorts & flip flops found we stripped on the platform, safe in the knowledge that anyone who saw us would totally understand our wardrobe malfunction - that we hadn't really been thinking when we set off at 04:30 from a cold UK. The train journey to the lake turned into an endless game of "the blue dot isn't really moving" on google maps & it genuinely felt like we might be sat on a scorching train forever. 150km isn't a ridiculous distance- but the train seemed unable to go very quickly and stopped frequently in very odd places. Not only at every single tiny station it got to - but also every now and again to let one man in a suit off of the train in the middle of nowhere to walk across a field to his house. This train did, indeed, do request stops!! 

3 hours later the train stopped and everyone stood up. We thought we were there- but we all got off to walk across the tracks and get on a train less than half the size of our first one & carry on our journey around the lake. This train was cramped & the 90 minutes that followed were pretty unpleasant. Balatonfured found, taxi to accommodation, a quick unpack and we headed out to find the race start and collect our accreditation passes & get dinner. 

The following morning we went to sunbathe & swim at the lake in the morning. I was surprised by 2 things- the temperature of the water (28 degrees) and the complete lack of clarity in the lake. It was clean, but the sand meant that you saw absolutely nothing. In UK lakes and rivers you can usually see your hand at least at some stage during the arm cycle- but here, nothing at all. 

The calm before the storm!

The race experienced a seemingly endless change of days, times & schedules. Originally scheduled for Saturday at 1pm, it was moved on Tuesday to Friday at 12:30. This was a new one to me. In a sport controlled by the elements, I'm used to races being postponed or cancelled due to dangerous weather conditions. I'm not used to races being brought forwards based on predicted race day weather. This change was incredibly unpopular with the swimmers- many of whom would miss their race as they'd have been travelling out after the race had taken place. Some people took the decision to cancel their flights & accommodation as the trip was pointless without the race. Then, a further email on Thursday to say they were reverting back to the original schedule, with the possibility of a 2 lap race instead of one, or a shorter race distance, or if necessary postpone the race until Sunday. The forecast was for very strong winds & storms on Friday night. The water was choppy, heading straight out into the lake was really hard and my training swim of the course on Friday evening wasn't a massively pleasant experience if I'm honest. This was before the anticipated change in weather.

So, returning from dinner on Friday evening, we walked into our apartment just before the storm arrived. We were treated to gale force winds, the most spectacular display of lightning that I've ever seen and very little sleep at all. Looking outside on Saturday morning at the trees still being thrown around in the high wind, it seemed impossible that lake conditions would be safe enough to enable the race to go ahead. However, when we arrived the lake was calmer than the previous day. The course had been shorted to 2400m over 2 laps. This kept us in closer to the shore & meant that we avoided the dangerous conditions further out. 

Final race preparation - 30 minutes before the race 

The final stages of race preparation are always a bit of a blur. I get very nervous before races, so it's Magda's role to reassure me that I've put the work in, that I'm fit, healthy and ready. The sun burnt through the cloud and meant that for 2 hours prior to the race I was seeking shade and drinking plenty. Final race safety briefing and suddenly we were walking out onto the pontoon for the start. I got a good start- stayed out of trouble, no elbow clashes and I was on my way. At the first turning buoy though I underestimated the tightness of the angle of the racing line and found myself slightly off course. The girl I was alongside going into the buoy was now about 15m ahead of me. A schoolgirl error and I was annoyed with myself. Once I corrected my line and started on the second side of effectively a triangle, I noticed the difference in water conditions. Arms were hitting chop, stroke length needed to be shortened to accommodate this, slightly quicker arm turnover and a lot more effort to go slower than the previous side. I noticed however that although I wasn't enjoying this, I was quickly closing up on the girl ahead of me. It was obvious that she was hating it more. That filled me with a lot of confidence and by the end of the lap I knew that I could beat her in choppy conditions. So I picked my moment and overtook her just before we reached this second side again. 

The 'Boss' and I celebrating
The last 800m hurt. It really hurt. I had no idea where I was in the race, I had no idea if the girl I'd just passed was going to come storming past me in the last 200m. I just focused on taking the most direct route to the finish and getting there as fast as I could. I touched the finish gantry and tried to pick out the number of white hats ahead of me. I could only see 2. There were 2 names on the results board- but mine didn't go up. I climbed out and at exactly the same time that I walked towards Magda to ask her, my name flashed up onto the results board in 3rd place. "Was I 3rd?" No words at all from her- just manic nodding. I'm pretty sure my next word was "SH*T!!". I couldn't believe it. A 5'3", puny in comparison to most, swimmer from a tiny Hertfordshire swimming club with very limited water time had just won a medal at the World Masters Championships. Once we could both manage a few more words, we celebrated and got slightly emotional. When I blogged about Masters swimming for Swim England 2 years ago I wrote "Masters swimmers want it as much as younger swimmers. We train just as hard. We take it just as seriously- we just juggle a lot more". On reflection, I still maintain that's true. It's also true of course of their coaches. This meant an awful lot. And to have my coach (and my friend) there to share it with me was incredible. We've only worked together for a year, but she knew what I wanted to achieve and set out to make sure that I was prepared to take advantage of this opportunity. She's invested more time in the build up to this than I have. I just turn up and train. But she plans those sessions meticulously to take me to (near) breaking point. It's been a genuinely joint effort and I'm incredibly grateful.

Stunning Szechenyi Spa

The biggest podium in the world?

I got changed, ate, checked my phone and- thanks to the live stream, there were already messages from home. I rang my husband, Dave- who'd watched the race at home with our daughter and my parents. They all shared in this success and I can imagine the reaction in our house when I finished the race.

After the medal ceremony, we travelled back to Budapest to start the next stage of our journey. The original plan was to compete in the 800m too, but I was drained emotionally and physically. I needed a break and to enjoy the moment. So, we've decided that really attacking an 800m at a major championships can wait for another day - but I'll be looking to go under 9:30 long course in the future. Having made the decision to withdraw, we spent 3 days enjoying Budapest. I swam in the Duna Area, we went to the Szechenyi Spa, walked miles along the Danube and proved that even in holiday mode swimmers and coaches are most likely to be found by water!!