ANOTHER medal for the cabinet.
That's the dream for Chloe Dalton as she balances her AFLW commitments with her preparations for the 2020 Tokyo Olympic Games.
Speaking on this week's episode of the Behind the Game Changers podcast, Dalton shared her desire to repeat the success she experienced playing in the 2016 Olympic gold medal-winning Australian Rugby Sevens team.
Immediately after the AFLW season finishes up, Dalton will return to training for her journey to Tokyo.
“Once we finish here with Carlton, depending on how we go with finals and that kind of thing, I’ll be back to Sydney pretty much within the week,” Dalton said.
“Then we’re off to Canada and Paris for a couple of tournaments before a training camp in Singapore, then a couple of weeks back home and then off to Tokyo for the Olympics.”
"It's so much bigger than you and the game that you're playing in."
— Carlton Womens (@carltonfc_w) March 5, 2020
Growing up, @kez_harrington dreamed of playing in the Navy Blue. As a co-captain and a member of the Club's Community team, she opens up on how much wearing the orange socks means. ??#BoundByBlue
Despite the busy schedule, Dalton is excited at the prospect of competing in the Olympics again, describing her 2016 experience in Rio as ‘surreal’.
One of the 26-year-old's more exciting moments in the lead up to the Olympics was the star power that she was able to mingle with in the heart of the Olympic Village.
“I tried really hard to find Usain Bolt, because apparently he eats chicken nuggets before he races at the free Maccas in the village,” she said.
“Every time I went there, I was like, ‘Is he here?’.”
Despite the thrill of star-spotting, nothing would compare to the moment Dalton was able to stand up on the podium beside her teammates and accept her gold medal.
The relief and pride the talented athlete felt as the medal was put around her neck is something that Dalton will never forget: it has played a big role in her motivation to once again compete in 2020.
“Standing up on the podium I just remember being so emotional, because I was looking straight out at my family and my closest friends who had all come over to Rio and they were just belting out the anthem,” Dalton said.
“It was the coolest thing to stand there with my arms around my teammates and look out at the people who were closest to me and who supported me from the start.”
Dalton showed her gold medal to Sarah Hosking during the podcast as she explained her one disappointment with her journey.
“I don’t know how much [the medal] weighs but the disappointing part is that it’s 97 per cent silver,” she said.
“It’s only 3 per cent gold, it’s gold-plated, I don’t know why.”
