I had a very late night (or early morning, depending on how you look at it) on Sunday so it was a struggle to get everything together to check in at a building in the Olympic Village by 10am, for our 8.20pm flight.  We were picked up at 4pm and arrived at the airport to find that they had erected a marquee to act as an overflow departure lounge for the teams.  There were hardly any seats yet the marquee was accommodating 4 chartered Airbus A330s-worth of people.

We boarded at 8pm and, at 9pm, just when I was beginning to wonder when they would be putting the "doors to automatic and cross-check", one of the cabin crew announced that he "hoped" they would be able to find all of the bags for our flight and that he "hoped" this would only take an hour!  In the end, we took off at 10.30pm.

On arrival in Zurich we had a 30 minute walk to a car park where all the bags from all 4 aircraft were piled up.  It was pandemonium!  The Italians took it upon themselves to load everyone's skis into their vans, irrespective of which Nation they belonged to!  They had to do some unloading when this was pointed out to them.  Conor had his ski bag beside him one moment and the next moment it had gone.  Personally, I think it went into one of the Italians' vans and will turn up in a couple of days.  His bag of clothes etc didn't arrive at all and I expect it is still in Sochi.  This was his 21st birthday and I felt very sorry for him.

By the time we had all our stuff the courtesy bus to our hotel had stopped so Sean had to arrange a taxi for us.  It is now 2am and I have had hardly any sleep in the last 2 days.  I really cannot wait to be at home and to get into my own bed.

It was really strange and I have no idea how this happened but I was the very first athlete (of any Nation) to walk out into the stadium after the flag bearers had come in.  The actual first!  A few people text me about this as they were watching their TVs at home.

The beginning of the Closing Ceremony was really good but it dragged on a bit too long, in my opinion.  I liked the fact that someone with a sense of humour managed to persuade the Sochi Organising Committee to allow them to display a "malfunction" of the 5th Olympic ring - everyone thought this was very funny.

My favourite and, at the same time, saddest part of the ceremony was when the bear extinguished the flame and cried!

And of course there were fireworks.  I have become used to a spectacular firework display every evening since February 7th, I don't know how I'll cope without them - I'll have to see if my Dad will let off a few rockets for me in the garden when I get home!

We stayed for a little while at the after-party whch was held in the stadium immediately after the public had left.  After we left the Fisht Stadium for the last time, we were all starving so we headed over to the Coastal Olympic Village (home of the free McDonalds) for supper.  I had a burger, fries, a drink and a McFlurry and I thought this was quite indulgent.  But Conor and Seamus had 3 burgers each together with 2 portions of chicken nuggets, a wrap, fries, milk shakes and McFlurries - Sean made them eat the lot before they could leave the table!  The amount of empty cartons on our table was unbelievable.  But they weren't alone, the place was packed with athletes who normally have to be fairly sensible at mealtimes, taking full advantage of McDonalds' hospitality!

I could not believe that we were all given medals as well as certificates for having participated in the Olympics!  It is lovely and quite heavy.  I don't know if they always do this at Olympic Games or if this was just something special for Sochi.

In the morning I have to finish packing before we check in our luggage here at the Village.  I'll definitely miss this sort of thing when I'm not travelling as part of an Olympic team and I have to start handling my own bags again!

Dos vedanya Sochi!

I am looking forward to seeing the television coverage of the Olympics when I get home. However, I have been reading some of the articles written about me online and in the press and I have no idea where some of the comments they claim I have made, have come from!

My sister has returned to Austria to continue her training and Conor is racing this evening. I will have to start packing.soon and then it will be the Closing Ceremony and then it will all be over.  I will be back at school and back with my books on RS, Geography and History!

I am sad to think of this amazing experience coming to an end but excited by the prospect of Pyeong Chang in 2018!!

I had a long time to wait to race today - the race began at 4.45pm and I was bib 73.  I had some rather conflicting instructions: the management said I should ski at a pace to finish the race but my coach told me to be brave and race like a lion.  It was confusing. I decided to settle on something in the middle!

The course was straightforward enough but, starting so far down the field I did have significant ruts etc to contend with.  It was one of these that nearly caused me to come out of the course and cost me a second.  However, I hung on and managed to complete the first run which I was very pleased with.  I had taken it at less than my normal pace and, whilst I was pleased to be in the finish, I was disappointed that I hadn't gone at full speed. 

After the first run I went up into the stands to see my family and I was literally mobbed!  People wanted my autograph and/or to have their photograph taken with me, one woman even gave me her baby to hold!!!  A man from Hawaii gave me a traditional, hand painted necklace from the Pacific Island.  I can only imagine what it must be like to be a celebrity!

By the time the second run began, night had fallen and it was completely under floodlights; my first night slalom.  I did put my all into the start of the run but I came out after 6 gates - another nasty rut that I couldn't overcome this time. 

Of course, I was disappointed not to finish but it has been a fantastic race and a really exicting day!

I am going to be bib 73 (out of 88) so I expect the course to be very difficult by the time I get to go down.

I watched a bit of the women's ice hockey final on TV before I went to bed.  It was USA -v- Canada.  My Mum and Dad and Victoria had tickets to see it so I was looking out for them on the TV but I didn't see them!  The USA were leading 2-0 for most of the game so it was a bit of a shock (especially to the USA team) when Canada scored first in extra time and won 3-2!

Slalom training tomorrow! 

The conditions were really bad.  For anyone with a bib bigger than number 10 the race was over before it began.  

With the words of my coach, Alain Untergassmair, ringing in my ears, I went out of the start gate at bib number 75.  I made it to the 15th gate before I shot out of the undulating and chopped-up course.  I did have the choice of taking it cautiously but I wanted to race it and I wanted to show what I can do - I don't regret my decision because there is no point being here if I'm not going to try to do my best.  As Alain said,  it is better to charge like a lion for 15 gates than crawl like a snail for 50!

I am sure that some of my friends and family watching on TV at home completely missed me because I popped up for just a few seconds as I came out of the course!

I cannot deny that I am disappointed because I had hoped to do well today.  However, I need to focus now on the Slalom race on Friday.  I haven't competed in a night Slalom before so I am looking forward to it. 

the Irish Times today:-

http://www.irishtimes.com/sport/other-sports/bell-tolls-for-florence-in-giant-slalom-1.1695965

I am simply going to do my best.  My GS training has been really good and I will try to race it as if it is another training run.

I am the youngest Alpine competitor and I hope to be able to go to many more Olympics for Ireland in the years to come so I want to just enjoy the experience of competing in Sochi.

The start has been brought forward for tomorrow from 11am to 9.30am because of the warm weather.  So I shall be up at 6am for an 8.30am inspection.

Wish me luck!!

The theme is often that of the fact that Victoria and I were competing for the single spot for Ireland but they are all interested in the fact that i am so young and the fact that I am still at school!

I Googled myself!  Not usually a good idea I am told but I was stunned at how many articles there are on line - I haven't even spoken to most of them!!

I trained Slalom today after a rest day yesterday and it went well.

Anna Fenninger of Austria won the women's Super G today.  There were a lot of casualties towards the end of the course so she is lucky to have completed the race let alone to have won it.  My Dad will be pleased!

We went to watch the USA -v- Slovakia Ice Hockey match this afternoon in the Olympic Park.  The atmosphere was really good and both teams had a lot of supporters,  The USA won 7-1.

The Olympic Park is very impressive and there were thousands of people.

I have a day off tomorrow - well, almost. I have to get my equipment checked first thing.  Then I'm going to watch the men's Super Combined race and I'm hoping to go to Rosa Khutor for dinner with my parents.

I did manage to watch some of the women's Super Combined today and was really excited for Julia Mancuso who won the Super G part of the competition and won a bronze medal overall.

I was hoping for Bode Miller or Axel Lund Svindal to win but, instead, to the great excitement of the many Austrian fans in the stadium, it was unexpectedly (for him as well) won by Matthias Mayer.

In the afternoon I had to go to have my photo taken - the one they will use on the big screens etc during my races.

There are 3 Olympic Villages here.  There is the big one down in Adler for the "Coaster Cluster" which is where the ice skaters, ice hockey players etc stay.  It is the one with  its own McDonalds and is so big that the athletes there have to get about by bicycle!

The next largest is for the "Mountain Cluster" and that is where the Alpine skiers, freestyle skiers and |sliders stay.  So this is where I am living.

The smallest Olympic Village, but definitely the most exclusive one, is where the endurance athletes are staying.  These athletes are the cross country and biathlon skiers and they are staying in what is going to be a 5 star hotel after the Games.  It has a gorgeous indoor-to-outdoor swimming pool complex but our team mate, Jan, says nobody has the energy to use it after one of their daily 15km training sessions!

OMG!!!  Walking out with the rest of the team into a stadium packed with 40,000 people (including the Russian President and the Secretary General of the United Nations) knowing that the pictures would be seen on televisions all around the world was nerve-racking and exciting at the same time - surreal!  I know that I shall never forget this experience.

My favourite parts of the "show" were 1) when the Russian National anthem was sung whilst 214 people dressed in the red, white and blue of their flag made the flag "wave" by moving in lines and 2) the lighting of the cauldron.

My Mum and Dad got emails and texts from family in the USA, Ireland and the UK, friends all over the World and old coaches etc all of whom had seen me walk out into the Olympic Stadium!

We have also had more photo calls including having our photos taken inside the Olympic rings!

Some Nations have started to let their presence be known by decorating the outside of their accommodation with their flags etc.  I like what Slovenia have done with their building.

So they hastily re-arranged my flights and I, instead,, travelled to Zurich via Amsterdam, arriving at 10.30pm and met the others at our hotel in Zurich - our flight to Sochi is at 11.55am tomorrow.

Leaving home to go to Sochi

http://www.independent.ie/sport/other-sports/olympics/bell-sisters-feel-the-agony-and-ecstasy-29963322.html

http://www.irishexaminer.com/sport/other-sports/sisters-support-still-strong-as-florence-flies-the-flag-in-sochi-257104.html

http://www.irishpost.co.uk/sport/winter-olympics

http://www.irishtimes.com/sport/other-sports/ireland-unveil-line-up-for-sochi-winter-olympics-1.1672215

http://www.olympics.ie/winter-games/sochi-2014/9250-sochi-bound-irish-team-selected-for-the-winter-olympic-games.html

I was really surprised by the number of reporters and cameras!  Conor, Seamus and I were the only team members in attendance because the other two were competing in Europe. Mr Hickey and the Russian Ambassador both gave speeches.  The interviews and photos began at 11am and it was after 2pm when we finally got away.

In the evening, the SAI organised a lovely reception at the Royal Irish Yacht Club in Dun Laoghaire. This was a more relaxed event with athletes' families and fellow Irish racers.  It was lovely to catch up with Hubert and Cormack.  

This has been a really long day and I have to get up early again tomorrow to catch the 6.40am flight back to Birmingham so that I can go to school for a couple of days before I head out to Sochi.