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I used to get nervous for various competitions and events, but nothing does quite compare

to that moment of walking out to the Olympics.

It's the 2004 Athens Olympics, and Caroline Bartisak is stepping into the stadium for her first match.

There's, of course, an amazing excitement and thrill of it, but I also had this absolute

sense of impending doom and dread, you know, heart racing, yeah, nausea.

Her sport is taekwondo, and she's representing Australia in the women's welterweight division.

I was an individual sport and walking out there can feel an incredibly lonely place.

You know, you know that it's up to you, there's no one else there, you know the spotlights on you,

so it can definitely feel really that sense of isolation and loneliness.

There's definitely the excitement of the roar of the crowd and, you know, knowing that my

family and loved ones were, you know, I definitely had people come over and travel to watch.

It would be Caroline's only Olympic fight. She lost to Guatemala's Heidi Juarez, who would end up finishing fourth overall.

Still, 20 years on, Caroline recalls that electrifying atmosphere in the stadium.

There was a specialness about it as well and a beauty there, but absolutely an intensity like

nothing else. But this can be a double-edged sword.

I feel like there's times when that helps you lift and rise in that moment

and helps harness focus and attention.

And then other times, and I think I've probably felt both of these in my match,

when it can lead to sort of almost feeling overwhelmed and panicked for sure.

These days, Caroline, now Caroline Anderson, is the lead psychologist for the 24 Australian

Olympic team. Part of her job is to help athletes perform in that beautiful intensity of the

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