Reiling prepares for Olympics

It's been a summer of highs and lows for Olympic hopeful Sara Reiling.\nThe sophomore diver has spent the summer in the air, flying around the country and world for training camps and competitions. Along with the rest of the U.S. Olympic diving team, Reiling toured six cities, including Bloomington, giving exhibitions for the public. She also competed in the U.S. national competition in Mission Viejo, Calif., and traveled to a meet in Spain.\n"We became a lot closer as a team," said Reiling of the summer's effect on the diving team. "It forces you to rely on your teammates for entertainment."\nSeth Pederson, director of communications for U.S. Diving, said choosing the Olympic diving team so early this year provided the divers with a lot of extra time to come together as a team.\n"They went into training knowing they were going to be Olympians," Pederson said.\nOn the downside, the traveling has left Reiling with little time to relax and almost no time to spend at home. She expected to practice with her IU team this summer, but her busy schedule made that impossible. Reiling's continuing studies at IU also have to be put on hold for the Olympics. She is not enrolled in classes this semester because the Olympics would force her to miss most of the first half of the semester.\n"I come home, have a day to wash laundry, a day to settle down and then I leave again," she said. "I'm constantly in a new place and I want to be here. After this summer, I don't want to fly ever again."\nBut Reiling has at least two long plane rides still ahead of her. Reiling and IU head diving coach Jeff Huber will fly to Sydney, Australia, Monday in preparation for the Sept. 15 start of the Olympics. Her parents, brother, his girlfriend and her boyfriend will be in Australia to watch her compete in the platform competition beginning Sept. 22 and ending Sept. 24.\nOne thing that might change when Reiling arrives in Sydney is the amount of attention she gets from the press. During the summer, she said she received a few calls but nothing crazy ' which was fine with her.\n"But my answering machine was broken," she said. "So they could only reach me when I was here, and I'm not here very much."\nLately, Huber said he's been receiving "about a call a day," from people wanting to speak with Reiling.\nBoth Huber and Reiling have similar goals in mind to stay on top for the competition. At the top of the list: staying focused.\n"I want her to stay focused on her diving and to not try too hard," Huber said. "There are a lot of distractions that come with the Olympics and a lot of distractions after making the Olympic team. We're trying to reduce that to its essence and to have her go out there and do what she would do for any other competition."\nHuber is also concerned with keeping Reiling as healthy as possible. During the summer she experienced problems with a sore back and wrist and a case of the flu.\nAfter talking to people with previous Olympic experience, trying to shrug off the bureaucratic inconveniences that come with the Olympics are another of Reiling's concerns.\n"You'll be seeing the same trainer for a week and then go one time during the competition, and they won't let you see that trainer and won't give you a reason," she said. "It's petty stuff but you can get wrapped up in it. I want to stay focused on my dives, doing it how I do in practice and not overperforming." \nAs she prepares for her first trip to Australia, Reiling looks forward to trying to do some sightseeing and also to moving into the Olympic Village.\n"I've heard a bunch of stories (about the Olympic Village)," she said. "That it's secluded and for athletes only. Just about the whole energy of it."\nAlthough Huber said Reiling's point total at the Olympic Trials would have been high enough to get her a medal at the last Olympics, neither are dwelling on the possibility of Reiling coming away with a medal.\n"I don't want to predict the future or what's going to happen," Reiling said. "I'm more interested in having a good time and doing well for myself"