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Preparing for competition
Canadian aerialist Deidra Dionne may become one of the top young athletes of the 2002 Olympic Games. The 19-year-old was named 1999-2000 World Cup female rookie of the year and won a bronze medal at the World Championships in January. Check out Dionne's diary on CNNSI.com as she trains for Salt Lake
August 21, 2001 The focus of my training has changed with the first World Cup around the corner. Australia is the host of the first two stops on the tour, with consecutive competitions on September 7-8. As an athlete, competition is what I live for and I gladly welcome the interruption to training for a trip Down Under to compete. Entering into camp No. 5 of the summer, the focus of training begins to shift from increasing the difficulty of jumps and accompanying technical issues, towards what I need to do to ensure my best results. This focus brings into play many different aspects of training, including mental, technical and tactical decisions.
I have six water-ramping days left. I need to use these days to work out any kinks that may cause me trouble once I start jumping on snow. The biggest challenge with the competition in Australia is the change from landing into the water to being able to adjust to landing on the snow. The landing hills we use in the winter are normally on a 30-degree slope, which is a sizable adjustment considering the water is flat. Technically, I feel as if I am ready to compete. All of my jumps feel extremely solid and I am able to perform them consistently. Another challenge with competing in the middle of summer training is the time frame. In the winter, I have a month, sometimes two, before my first contest. I am able to take time working up to the most difficult jumps. I am in Australia only a week before the competition and therefore I do not have the luxury of time before working up to the jumps I compete. This format has the tendency to favor the veterans, who have been performing their jumps for a long time. Last year I struggled and was not 100 percent confident with my jumps before the contest. This summer I am feeling much better about all of my jumps, and with the experience of last year, I feel prepared for whatever comes my way. Technically, I feel I am ready to compete. The next step is to prepare myself mentally. My mental preparation involves planning for the unexpected. Australia's weather is characteristically unpredictable. It can be warm and sunny, foggy or cold and stormy. After a typical mild winter, they are suffering from a lack of snow and therefore I am not sure what to expect. Through mental imagery and relaxation exercises, I allow myself to imagine performing perfect jumps regardless of the conditions. My mental training is similar to my technical training. I go through every step of the training as well as the competition itself. At this point I need to step up my relaxation exercises so in Australia, I am 100 percent confident and 100 percent ready to perform at my best. Tactically, I have to decide what jumps to perform in the competition. This summer I have increased my jump difficulty to include a triple twisting double flip, called a full double full. I have to decide if it is in my best interest to compete in the same two jumps that I competed in for the last two years or to increase my difficulty to include this new jump. I have not yet performed a full double full on snow; therefore, with the limited time frame as well as the unpredictable weather it might be best to do the two jumps I know I do well. This next week will be a busy one as I finish all of the last-minute preparations that need to be completed before I leave. I am ready for the competition and am confident in my ability to do well. I take great pride in representing Canada on the World Cup circuit and look forward to another chance to put our country in the No. 1 spot on the podium.
-- Deidra
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