Saladino feels "relaxed" towards Olympic Games
PANAMA CITY, Aug. 10 (Xinhua) -- For Irving Saladino, current world champion of long jump, the Olympic Games of Beijing 2008 "is one more competition, just with another name," and that is why he does not feel nervous.
Saladino is the only hope for Panama to win the first gold medal for the country and he said that "I'm tranquil. I feel relaxed. I'm use to this. It's another competition more just that name changes. These are the Olympic Games but things are the same," Saladino told Xinhua.
Saladino left Macao and entered the Olympic Village of Beijing on Aug. 10, he will fight for the gold medal on the competition of August 16 and 18.
Saladino, who is 25 years old, achieve the best mark of the last 14 years in lung jump on May 2008, with a jump of 8.73 meters in Hengelo, Holland, which located him on the seventh place from the best ones of the history.
"I'm ready mentally and physically. I only hope that I do everything fine. Thank God my lesion will not affect me," Saladino said.
"I trained every day since 18:00 hrs to 21:30 hrs in Macao, because I'm close to the competition. My coach set the schedule because it's more or less at the time I will compete," Saladino said.
"8.73 is the best in my competence. In trainings I have not reached 8.73m, because we don't make trainings of full jump. Only technique and half jumps," Saladino told Xinhua.
Saladino is the great hope for Panama to achieve the first gold medal in its history.
