KEEP STEWY SAFE
OLYMPIC OPERATION
HIGH up in the Swiss Alps, three Australians are quietly going about their roles in the most important operation launched by the Australian track and field team.
They have virtually no contact with the outside world, meticulously planning every outing to ensure the risks are minimal of Covid catching up to them and bringing down Stewart McSweyn, Australia‘s best medal chance on the track in Tokyo.
The mastermind behind Operation Keep Stewy Safe is Nic Bideau, who was integral in guiding Cathy Freeman to Olympic gold and now looks after Australia’s distance running prospects.
McSweyn, 26, from Tasmania’s King Island, is at the top of the list with the 1500m star coming into his first Olympic Games ranked No. 4 in the world.
For the past 12 months Bideau has planned for this moment, the crucial final phase of the preparation where the risk of contracting the disease is heightened.
McSweyn, Bideau and Dave McNeill, who will race in the 5000m at Tokyo, have been living in an apartment in St Moritz for the past couple of months.
It is perfect for training being at altitude (1800m above sea level) with less than 5000 residents and most importantly, it’s Covid-free.
“There is no Covid here, noone here has ever had it,” Bideau said. “It is a safe environment with clean mountain air and it’s pretty isolated, there aren’t many people here.”
Being anti-social is also part of the precautions which the trio have become accustomed to doing.
“It is triple the amount of work for a normal preparation because you just have to come up with extra things as it is always in the back of your mind,” Bideau said.
“You have to do the normal training, the normal preparation, the normal planning to get ready to run super well but you’ve got to make sure there is not a chance they test positive or as little chance as possible.
“The biggest things are just really not mixing with other people, being anti-social, staying away from other people and that is what we are trying to do.”
The trip into Japan has been planned to the minute. On Thursday they will undertake a three-hour train ride to Zurich where they will catch a direct flight to Narita International Airport which is on the outskirts of Tokyo.
They will then move into a hotel directly next door to the airport where there is an athletics track that will become home for three days.
“We knew we had to adjust to the time zone and the hot weather,” Bideau said.
“You need to spend some time doing those things, we didn’t want to do it in any place, wanted to do it in a place that was secured, safe and really strict that no one is able to get in there except us.
“We didn‘t want to have to do a two-hour bus ride or train ride mixing with a whole bunch of Japanese which obviously increases the risks. We just wanted to go really quickly to a place and settle in.
“We will again keep to ourselves. Do the training and then stay in our room. It’s all these little things which in the end could be the difference.”
McSweyn‘s Olympic campaign begins with the heats of the 1500m in the morning session on August 3.