Debbie Ferguson – McKenzie – Interview Female Coaching Network, 7 July 2015 by @fasterfergie16 - Debbie Ferguson-McKenzie

Most people don’t see this part, but there were days when I was throwing up, there were days when I couldn’t walk after a session, days when I felt like quitting and there were days when I’d say why am I doing this, I don’t want to do this anymore! But nobody sees that part, so when you make a final and you’re like wow…at least before the gun goes off, I can say I am number 8 or top 8 in the World! That to me, if you think of how many people are in this World, is fantastic, it’s awesome!

I don’t know about any secrets, but I think if I could put it in a nutshell; I’m an athlete of routine, routine of being disciplined, hard working and dedicated. Doing the small things that most athletes don’t want to do, tapering down, ice baths, all kinds of stuff; If coach says do 6, don’t try to do 4! Your goal is to do 8. Those are things that made me a better athlete. I don’t drink, I don’t smoke, I try to take care of my body, rest etc.

It is an athlete’s greatest accomplishment to be at the Olympics and in an Olympic final, so that’s what athletes have to learn to thrive on. Just like when you train your body physically, you have to train your mind mentally to harness that positivity from everything that is going on around you and put it into that competition. It’s almost like being in Hollywood; you have a script, the scene/race has already been rehearsed. I’ve trained, sacrificed and worked hard, so now it’s time to portray that in front of the World.