Aussies hope contact lenses will be the key in Beijing

[rainbowgirl28]

http://www.smh.com.au/news/sport/contac ... 98602.html

Contact sport: stars to beat Beijing blur

Email
Printer friendly version
Normal font
Large font
Jessica Halloran
October 30, 2007
Advertisement

AUSTRALIA's Olympic aspirants will be given contact lenses in an unprecedented move to combat Beijing's pollution and improve their vision as they strive for gold.

At yesterday's Australian Olympic team briefing in Sydney, sprinters, baseballers, equestrian athletes, sailors and rowers had their eyes tested to see if they needed lenses.

It is the first time the Olympic team has provided optometrists to complete eye-testing and prescribe contact lenses. The testing will also ensure Australian athletes' vision is the sharpest it can be in competition.

Linda Smith, representing Johnson & Johnson, which will supply the Acuvue lenses with a UV filter, said they would benefit most athletes because of Beijing's humidity and smog.

"Because of the pollution, the haze and the humidity, it's quite difficult for athletes to wear sunglasses," she said.

"So contact lenses are a perfect way of being sure of optimising their performance by wearing contact lenses rather than risk their sunglasses becoming foggy.

"Because they are disposable lenses, they only need to wear them on the day and take them out. They can wear them at training, competition, whatever else. They get UV protection as well. It's certainly helping an athlete's health and vision."

The plan was revealed as 1200 athletes were put through the AOC briefing yesterday and measured for their official outfits. However, only about 480 will make it to China.

Sprinter Josh Ross did star jumps as he tried on his new Olympic shoes. Baseballers watched the Boston Red Sox clinch the World Series on the big screen in the hotel bar as they waited to be measured for their Beijing blazers.

And all the while drug testers lurked in the hotel hallway with their clipboards, waiting to pounce on the athletes for a sample.

"It's always exciting trying on new gear and everything for the Olympics," Ross said. "It's the ultimate event on any sporting calendar."

He jumped around and did a few sprints as he tried on some tracksuit pants and dress shoes for size.

"The shoes? They're cool," Ross said. "I did my star jump approval."

Kayaker Shelley Oates-Wilding, 42, has been to four briefings but only made it to two Olympics. The mother of two, a dual Olympian who represented Australia in kayaking in 1996 and 2000, has employed a full-time nanny to help her in her dream of making a third Games.

"When I got the invite to come to this one, I was a little bit sceptical," Oates-Wilding said. "I went to the one for Athens but I did not make the team, but it's a wonderful process. It's a part of the whole Olympic journey … It's very special."

The queues for the uniform measuring were long and the athletes flicked through an AOC manual to pass time. They were later ushered into another conference room and briefed about adopting a "winning attitude". The video told the athlete not to be just a participant but a competitor.

Former Olympic swimming coach Laurie Laurence and gold medallists James Tomkins and Susie O'Neill appeared on screen to motivate the future Olympians.

[KJ]

Wow that is crazy.. who would have ever thought contacts might become part of your equipment!