London 2012 blog

Back in 2005, when London won the honour of hosting the 2012 Olympic Games, I was still an athlete, competing at international level. As such, I had signed up to be an ambassador for the bid. Undoubtedly some of London's most significant pledges made us stand out from the rest and probably won us the Games: the regeneration of the East End, the lasting legacy, involvement of the youth and an Olympic Games designed around the needs of the athletes.

Our work so far has reaffirmed these promises and it was with great pleasure, if a little self-imposed pressure, that I jetted off to Osaka for the World Athletics Championships.

Back in 2005, when London won the honour of hosting the 2012 Olympic Games, I was still an athlete, competing at international level. As such, I had signed up to be an ambassador for the bid. Undoubtedly some of London's most significant pledges made us stand out from the rest and probably won us the Games: the regeneration of the East End, the lasting legacy, involvement of the youth and an Olympic Games designed around the needs of the athletes.

Our work so far has reaffirmed these promises and it was with great pleasure, if a little self-imposed pressure, that I jetted off to Osaka for the World Athletics Championships.

I wore two hats during my visit. The first was for my role in LOCOG's Technology Team. I toured the Nagai Stadium and met with a number of key IAAF staff. We talked through the technology provision within the stadium, what worked well and what could be done better. There is a lot to learn.

The stadium has the largest video projection screen in Japan and is also the first stadium in Japan with a fully digital audio network and control system. I watched the Results Team testing a new method for measuring long and triple jumps. By using High Definition television and cameras located at strategic points along the runway and beside the sand pit they could measure precise distances (to the nearest millimetre) from a remote location elsewhere in the stadium. It is new techniques like this that we hope to utilise to make our Games as advanced and efficient as possible.

With my other hat on, I became an athlete again, but without the pressure and stress that comes with performing in a GB vest. I toured the venue with members of the team that are designing our stadium. I was able to answer their questions and help them understand the processes an athlete must go through before his or her competition. This is all information that we athletes pick up over the years and take for granted. We expect the public to understand what goes on in the warm up area and the call room procedure whereas, in fact, most people don't realise that preparation for your Olympic race will start in the Village maybe 4 or 5 hours before you actually step foot on the competition track.

It is essential for good performance that all aspects of preparation run smoothly. The Design Team met with members of Team GB in the warm up area and came away with a much greater understanding and an excited enthusiasm about designing our stadium and its facilities.

Obviously the highlight of my trip was being in the stadium to watch my friends, Christine Ohuruogu and Nicola Sanders, take an unprecedented gold and silver for GB in the women's 400 metres (my old event). The excitement of the race, the elation of victory and the pride of singing the national anthem while watching Union Jacks at the top of the flagpoles made me imagine the awesome thrill of that spectacle in London in 5 years...