ICE.COLD.COFFEE

It's better than striking 4D!

I haven't felt so happy in a long, long time.

It's all because of 4862.

What's 4862?

It's my timing for my 50m breaststroke competition today. 48.62 seconds!

That's my personal best!

Ok, I know this is a little slow. Very slow actually.

Because the timing to qualify for the finals is about 37 to 39 seconds.

I took 10 seconds more!

But why am I so happy?

It's because my previous best was 51 seconds. And when I first joined swimming this April, my timing was 1 min.

I improved 12 seconds!

That's a great achivement for me!

I was really hoping that I could do it under 50 seconds and I did it! I'm so proud of myself. Haha.

I started the day feeling brave because I felt that I had nothing to lose. Even of I came in last, so be it. I wasn't hoping to get into the finals anyway.

But as the day went by, I started to get nervous.

After lunch, it suddenly hit me that I might make a fool of myself. I might make a big mistake. I began to feel scared.

At 1pm, Li Ling and I went to change, then warm up. It was less scary then because we were occupied and didn't have time to let our minds wonder.

Soon, it was reporting time. We lined up according to our events. We were seated in rows according to our lanes.

I talked a little to the girl on my left and we wished each other good luck. I guess it made both of us feel less nervous.

Also, the girl in the 4th or 5th lane wished everyone good luck. I thought it was really nice of her.

Because people in the 4th and 5th lanes are the best, while the not-so-fast swimmers are at lanes 1 or 8. I was at Lane 7.

I heard from my friend that this arrangement is so that there would be an "arrow" shape during the competition. With the fastest in the middle lanes and those slower at the sides.

So it was nice that she wasn't stuck up and all. Instead, she made us feel good.

Although you can make friends, you must always remind yourself that it is still a competition. If they win, it means you lose. There can be only one winner. That's the cruel reality.

Anyway, back to the competition.

When I first plunged, I was so afraid that I had a false start. Meaning that I plunged before the command was given. If I did that, I would have been disqualified.

That's because after I plunged, I didn't see anyone in the left or right lanes.

Still, I continued to swim.

I totally forgot all my strokes and just did high frequency swimming.

I couldn't hear anything.

My mind was completely blank.

I only knew that I wanted to finish as quickly as possible.

When I was almost two-third through, I felt really tired. But I told myself that I couldn't give up.

I went on and when I finished, I was panting like mad.

I couldn't see the results because my spectacles weren't with me.

When I went back to the grandstand, I asked the others what was my timing. While I desperatly wanted to know if I did well, a part of me didn't want to know for fear of disappointment.

But Reeve told me that my timing was 48.62 seconds.

I was shocked!

I thought he saw wrongly.

But when I realised that was my timing I was really glad!

I messaged lots of my friends and told them the good news.

It's really ironic that 48 seconds can be good news to me while it may be terrible news for others.

It's weird that I was so happy about my timing. Haha. But I was proud of myself!

Now when I look back, I ask if I could've done better.

Maybe. I felt that I did my best then. But if I trained harder the last month, it could've been better.

Regrets?

Of course. I made a big mistake. After I plunged, I forgot to glide. Instead, I started swimming straight away. That cost me maybe 1 or 2 precious seconds.

One will never be contented with his performance. He'll always feel that he could've done better.

But, it's already over. I should be praising myself for what I did well.

At least I plunged well. And I didn't give up halfway.

Most importantly, I had fun.

That's all that matters!

hey there! am happy to read about your accomplishment! don't get TOO stuck on 4862 as i'm sure it's going to get smaller :)

Haha. Thanks! Working towards it.

Btw, I took your advice on using larger font because I visited my blog using my school's computer and realised how small it is. Thanks for your feedback!