The first training session from Rio is in the books. The team left the hotel in the afternoon and drove across the city to train at the HSBC Arena. Used for basketball in the 2007 Pan American Games, the gym is part of the Riocentro Sports Complex that hosted a variety of sports during last year's competition. We trained in the auxiliary gym, which was more than satisfactory for our team.

We arrived just as Italy were finishing training and the guys headed to the locker room as our Group B colleagues finished up their session. A warmup and stretch lead into some small sided games with the emphasis on defense. The pace is always fast in futsal, and there's not too much time to take a breather. The 90 minutes flew by and son the guys were finishing up the workout with some shooting drills.

The ride home involved less traffic than usual and soon the guys were showering up in their rooms. Dinner is next and a team meeting to follow - it's certainly been an eventful first day!