CBC Beijing The Olympic Games 2008The Official Website of the Beijing 2008 Olympic GamesCBC Beijing The Olympic Games 2008

Posted by Christine Sinclair | Aug 22, 08 09:35 PM

So our olympic dream is now over.

About a week ago we lossed 2-1 to the Americans in overtime. It was devastating. We played so hard and so well, but came up short.

Since the loss the team has been spending time in the athlete's village soaking up the Olympic experience. It has been amazing as we have been able to attend numerous events to cheer on our fellow Canadians.

I've been to track and field, water polo, wrestling, taekwando, indoor volleyball and the womens beach volleyball final. It has been a great experience amd it has been a blast hanging out with my teammates without the stress of competition.

As a team we are staying until after the closing ceremonies. I am very excited about that since we were unable to attend the opening ceremonies.

Posted by Christine Sinclair | Aug 9, 08 09:29 PM

We have now finished two of our three group games. We just returned back to the hotel in Tianjin after playing China to a 1-1 tie. As a team we are very satisfied with our performances so far.

China is one of the best teams in the world and we were unlucky not to have beaten them. For the majority of game we dominated the Chinese, which kept the 52,000 fans quiet. Our team was extremely focused and determined as we knew it would take one of our best games to get a result against the talented Chinese.

Prior to kickoff, our team was relaxed but pumped up. One of the most amazing moments of the evening was when the national anthems were played. During the Chinese national anthem all 52,000 supporters sang, giving me the chills. The opening minutes of the game were very even, with both teams creating few goal chances. Slowly we began to dominate, not allowing them out of their end.

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Posted by Christine Sinclair | Aug 5, 08 04:52 PM

We arrived in Beijing not knowing what to expect because no one on the team has ever been to the Olympics before.

Ever since I was a little girl I have dreamt of going to the Olympics and being part of the largest sporting event on Earth. And actually to be here, it is far better than I ever thought possible.

During the drive from the airport to the Olympic village we were able to observe the changes to the city that have occurred since we were last in Beijing. We first noticed the blue sky, something we had never seen in Beijing. Then I noticed how clean everything was, plants were freshly planted and there seemed to be no cars on the roads.

We arrived at the village as the biggest group of tourists, everyone with their cameras around their necks and taking pictures of absolutely everything Olympic.

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Posted by Christine Sinclair | Jul 31, 08 02:41 PM

On July 21 our team headed off to Singapore for a week prior to heading into Beijing. We went to Singapore to play a few games, but more importantly to acclimatize to the extreme heat and humidity. Our week in Singapore was amazing.

We arrived very excited, knowing that the next time we are in Canada we will have participated in the Olympics, hopefully having done very well.

The facilities and hospitality in Singapore were first class. Our hotel was perfect, mostly because there was a Starbucks right across the street. That is one thing this team is obsessed with. After training each morning about a dozen of us journey across the street in the 35-degree weather for our one taste of home.

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Posted by Christine Sinclair | Jul 23, 08 07:53 PM

Wow, what a couple of weeks!

On July 10 our women’s national soccer team finally was able to play a home international game. We played Brazil in Toronto. It was our first game in Canada in over two years. And it went perfectly, almost.

All the events surrounding the game were great, we met with young kids at the downtown Winners store, signed autographs and did everything we could to try and promote our game and women’s soccer. More than 13,000 fans showed up.

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Posted by Christine Sinclair | Jun 27, 08 10:40 AM

On June 22 we arrived back in Vancouver after a successful 12-day trip to South Korea. Our Team Canada women’s soccer team participated in the Peace Queen Cup and finished second.

After winning our group, consisting of Argentina, South Korea and New Zealand, we faced the United States in the final. Whenever we play the Americans it is a good game. This was the second time in a row that we faced the U.S. in this tournament final, as we lost to them 1-0 two years ago. This year’s final ended with the same score line, however it was a much different game.

For the first time we managed to take the game to them, forcing them to defend. However, they are a very talented and organized team which made it difficult for us to create many good goal scoring chances. The first half was even with much of the game being played in the midfield.

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Posted by Christine Sinclair | Jun 16, 08 12:36 PM

We only had one day of training in South Korea to prepare for our first game in the Peace Queen Cup tournament. It was against Argentina and we did better than OK, winning 5-0.

It was an important game and a big win because we play Argentina in our first game of the Olympics. I scored two goals and Melissa Tancredi, Diana Matheson and Brittany Timko each scored one. The game marked the return of Amber Allen after being out for a year with an injury. It is exciting to see the team healthy and playing well.

The last time we played Argentina was during the 2003 world cup. We beat them 3-0 but I remember it wasn't a very good game. The Peace Queen Cup in South Korea will be our final tournament before the Beijing Olympics.

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Posted by Christine Sinclair | Jun 6, 08 07:52 PM

Our national soccer team is in countdown mode for our first-ever Olympics.

Since returning from Australia a couple weeks ago we have been working harder than ever. The Australia trip was a difficult one, as we only spent five days in Sydney. The flight to Australia was 15 hours, and when we landed in Australia we played the next day.

We tied the first game 0-0 and then lost our second game 2-1. It is always frustrating to lose, but when you deserve to win the game it makes it even worse. When we arrived back in Vancouver the team was given a couple days off to try and adjust to the drastic time change.

However, since camp has restarted the team has been focused and the training has been intense. I believe the team has used the loss to Australia as a wake-up call and reminder of how we have to play in order to compete with the best teams in the world.

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Posted by Christine Sinclair | May 16, 08 12:22 AM

The following blog was written on May 16 by Christine Sinclair as she and the Canadian soccer team headed Down Under to compete against Australia. For an update, please scroll to the bottom of the entry.

In April 2008 my childhood dream of being an Olympian came true. That’s when the women’s national soccer team beat Mexico 1-0 to qualify for the Beijing Olympics.

After failing to qualify for the 2004 Athens Games we were heartbroken, which made qualifying for 2008 even more exciting. I remember watching the Summer and Winter Olympics as a little kid, hoping one day I could march into an Olympic stadium for the opening ceremony. That was when women’s soccer was not an Olympic sport, so back then I wanted to be a skier or a speed skater.

Since qualifying for the Olympics life has gotten a little crazy. The media attention the team has received has been a pleasant surprise and the amount of training has increased. Since qualifying we have had two weeks off and then travelled to Washington D.C. to play the Americans. The game against the US did not go as planned, and we lost 6-0. It was very disappointing, especially since the last time we played the US we took them to penalty shots.

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