Australian speed skater Daniel Greig sees sports psychologist after crash in 500m race

AUSTRALIA’S Daniel Greig is seeking advice from a psychologist as he battles to mentally recover from every skeedskater’s worst nightmare.

AUSTRALIA’S Daniel Greig is seeking advice from a psychologist as he battles to mentally recover from every skeedskater’s worst nightmare.

His straight-talking veteran coach Desly Hill admitted her young charge was “gutted” by his fall only ten steps into a pet 500m race on Monday.

The challenge facing the former World Champiosnhip skater-turned-coach is getting Greig to believe he’s not going to make the same mistake again when he throws everything at the 1000m event tomorrow in Sochi.

Greig’s realistic dream of an Olympic medal was ripped away when the tip of his skate dug into the ice only four second into his race, sending him sprawling.

Hill has been quick to point out that the same error has happened to the world’s best because it means you are skating right on the edge.

“It’s a super fine line between perfect and that,’’ she said.

She said Greig was also talking to a psychologist to put the disaster behind him.

The 22-year-old made one call to an unnamed confidant immediately after the fall and has been avoiding all social media contact.

Understandably, Greig was a little tentative when he took to the ice to complete his second run in the 500m.

Hill said his time in the second race was about four-tenths of a second slower that it should have been because he was tentative on his start, fearing he could fall again.

The South Australian- born skater said it had “never crossed his mind” that such a disaster could strike him on the world’s biggest sports stage.

Despite every fibre in his body telling him to run away and hide, Greig is striving to remain positive.

“I know it’s a huge blow to the start of my Olympics but at the same time you can look at these things as opportunities,’’ he said.

“If I can come through this and out the other side with my determination intact and if I can manage to good 1000 metre, that’s going to make me a better athlete’’.

Greig will take on a true superstar of the winter athletic scene in the 1000m race with the USA’s Shani Davis seeking his third consecutive gold medal in the men’s 1000m.

But the Dutch juggernaut is rolling fast at Sochi, claiming a trifecta in the 500m, including a gold and bronze to speed twins Michel and Ronald Mulder.

Hill, a veteran on the world speedskating scene, knows what it takes to win, claiming four gold World Championship medals herself during a career spanning 13 years.

The tragedy for Greig was that coming into Sochi he had hit the best form of his short career.

Only last month, he won breakthrough international medals at the 2014 World Sprint Speed Skating Championships in Nagano, Japan.

Greig took home silver in both 500m races as well as placing 5th and 8th in the 1000m races. The results saw him finish third overall.