Drake Pleased With 38th on Olympic Debut
Team GB’s Ed Drake said he was ‘pretty pleased’ with his 38th place finish in the men’s downhill on his Olympic Winter Games debut today (Monday).
The 24-year-old from Kingston-upon-Thames became Britain’s first Alpine skier to go into action at the Vancouver 2010 Olympic Winter Games.
His time of 1:57.91 on the Whistler Creekside downhill course was enough to secure 38th place in the 64-strong field.
“It’s really cool to get stuck in. It was great fun, I loved it,” said Drake, who returns to action on Tuesday (February 16) in the men’s super combined.
“I would like to have finished in the top-30, but a top-40 is good it was better than my bib number,” he added.
“I skied well today. I made a couple of mistakes, but I’m pretty pleased with my performance. It was a great course; it’s got a bit of everything.
“I’ve dreamed about being at the Olympics Winter Games,” he added. “This is the biggest stage there is and I’m representing my country. It can’t get much better than that, apart from winning a medal.
“With me it’s not about the here and now, it’s about what’s coming and what I expect over the next four years and beyond,” he added. “This is very much a learning curve for me, but it’s a great experience."
Drake says he expects his best performance in Vancouver to come in Friday’s super G.
Notes to editors:
Team GB consists of 52 athletes from 6 sports and 11 disciplines at the Vancouver 2010 Olympic Winter Games. Visit www.teamgb.com for further information.
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