Getting back into the grove of things
June 19 2000

The Austrian Grand Prix was not as challenging as I had envisaged. I had only ten people in my weight class, with only about four decent competitors. I was however not disappointed with the experience; the people were very nice and the kids were very supportive. Most importantly, this trip afforded me the opportunity to deal with time changes. It's one thing I'm not very good at, so the more I get myself accustomed to it, the better off I'll be. I also had the opportunity to work on my finish when I sensed blood. I was aggressive and lethal, even though the competition allowed me do what I wanted.

The next week will be all about getting back into the grove of things. I figure I will need a few days to to return to North American time, so training this week will not be as intense as it should be. I also have a few appearances to make in Toronto and Vancouver during the coming week, which is a welcome reprieve. Things should get back to normal in ten days.

On the mat this past weekend, I was forced to go after guys as if I was losing the match, even though, in most of the cases I was up by 6-8 points. It reminded me of my college days when I would take guys down and let them up, just to take them down again. Mike Jones' philosophy of wrestling every second in the match came to fruition at this tournament. I find though, that I am a better wrestler when I feel threatened, when I have the fear that I could possibly lose a match. It bothered me for the longest time, that is, until I figured it out. I AM JUST GETTING MORE AND MORE CONFIDENT. AND IF YOU ASK ME, THAT CAN ONLY BE GOOD.

Keep sweating... Daniel (Dynamite) Igali.