Deidra Dionne Interview
As we get closer and closer to the Beijing Olympics it's time to get all winter again as we speak with two-time Canadian Olympic Aerial Skier and Olympic Bronze Medallist Deidra Dionne about her extraordinary career and Olympic experiences! We find out more about the sport of Aerial Skiing in Canada and why Deidra could've very nearly competed in another discipline in the sport at the Olympics. We also learn more about her amazing Olympic appearances, including the feelings of winning a medal at such a young age and the extraordinary story about her second Olympics which occurred only five months after breaking her neck. Added to this we find out more about her transition from competing into commentating and why she admires a certain legendary Aussie Aerial Skier so much. It's an amazing chat that you simply can't miss!
EPISODE TRANSCRIPT
Please note this is an automated transcript that may contain errors.
BEN WATERWORTH: It is Off The Podium, An Olympics Podcast coming to you once again for another interview episode. And as we get closer and closer to the Beijing Olympics, it's time to get a bit wintery in here, as we are speaking to two-time Olympic aerial skier from Canada, Deidra Dionne. And an exciting chat this one, because Deidra's got a very fascinating story about overcoming adversity and everything else in between. She is an Olympic bronze medallist, won bronze back in Salt Lake City, next to our very own Alisa Camplin, of course famously won the gold for Australia. The other two competitors next to Alyssa on that podium were two Canadians, Deidra being one of them, and Veronica Brenner, who won the silver in that one. So Deidra talks a lot about her journey to get to the Olympics, how she was basically on the couch watching the Nagano Olympic Games, thinking, wouldn't it be great to be an Olympian one day? Four years later, she is an Olympian, and she's winning an Olympic bronze medal. The experiences of being at Salt Lake and the Olympic experience in general. A very famous Canadian Olympian who has been on this show, who she went to high school with, and how that maybe was affected when she went back to her hometown after those Olympics. And as I said, overcoming adversity, a very powerful story about going to the Torino Olympics in 2006. Five months prior to that, she broke her neck in an accident while competing, and she was able to compete at the Olympic Games in 2006. Incredible story. And it's got an Australian connection too, so you'll hear a little bit about that here as well. And also to our Canadian listeners who may hear her voice during the Beijing Olympics very shortly. During that coverage, she talks a little bit more about going from on the snow to behind the snow, behind the mic, behind the snow. You'll understand what I mean when you hear her talk about it. Here is our chat with two-time Olympic aerial skier from Canada, and an Olympic bronze medallist, Deidra Dionne.
BEN WATERWORTH: So excited to welcome our next guest to the show today. We are returning to the sport of freestyle skiing and returning to one of our favourite sports on the show, aerial skiing, by talking to a two-time Olympian, Olympic bronze medallist, and somebody who won their bronze medal in a very, very famous event for Australia. But she's not from Australia, she's from Canada, which is exciting in itself. Please welcome to Off The Podium, Deidra Dionne, Deidra. First of all, welcome to Off The Podium. It's a pleasure to have you here on the show today.
DEIDRA DIONNE: Hi Ben, nice to meet you.
BEN WATERWORTH: Nice to meet you too. I guess it's probably not often you get introduced at being from a very famous event for another country. I mean, most Australians fondly remember the 2002 women's aerials at the Salt Lake Olympics for what Alyssa achieved, but you obviously were standing next to her. So I mean, plenty of things to talk about to you as well.
DEIDRA DIONNE: Yeah, I mean, that day was obviously huge for Australia. So I think part of the story is that it was historic for the country and probably makes that day a little bit special in history compared to a lot of other Olympic events, which is pretty cool.
BEN WATERWORTH: I actually vividly remember it for so many reasons, obviously as an Australian, but I've always been in love with Canada. It's always kind of been my second home, second country behind Australia. And the thing that made that event so exciting for me was the fact that not only Australia won a gold, but then there was two other Canadians on the podium. So I was kind of like, wow, this is great for my fandom, because it's like gold for Australia, silver for Canada, bronze for Canada, the perfect podium.
DEIDRA DIONNE: Well, we kind of felt that way as well. I think we probably would have changed the order if we could have had our way. But I mean, obviously incredibly special. Ariel says this is interesting, like so many individual sports, you are friends with your competitors because at the heart of it all, you're teammates, you travel around the coaching situations, you work with different teams. So I can say as a group between Alisa and Veronica and I, when it came down to that, it was really special to share it together.
BEN WATERWORTH: Now we've had many aerial skiers on the show, all from Australia, and it's always interesting to kind of hear the background of how they got in the sport for the most part from Australia. It's generally they're stolen away from gymnastics, kind of I don't feel any... We're always talking to gymnasts on here going, don't let those aerial skiers steal you away, like stay in the sport, we want some gymnastics medals. But how is the scene in Canada? Is it kind of a case of given that you're basically born with skis on your feet, you know, straight away, is it more of a case that people do grow up wanting to be aerial skiers rather than getting poached from different sports?
DEIDRA DIONNE: Well, everyone kind of grows up wanting to play hockey first off, so no one grows up saying, okay, I want to be an aerial skier. But I would say, you know, it's changed drastically since I entered the sport. So I was probably the last generation of a pure skier that didn't have gymnastics background, whereas like today, we go out and we actively recruit gymnasts and have like talent ID sessions, similar to how Australia and Russia, you know, all China, all of the other countries are finding success. But I came into the sport as a ski racer. So I did alpine skiing and grew up at a very small hill, not in the mountains, and got bored of doing the same gates over and over and was at that pivotal age of 12, 13, where it felt cooler to go flying off jumps and hang out and be in that more relaxed atmosphere. And my parents signed me up to be a mogul skier, and I had far more success early doing aerials and promptly turned my focus as quickly as possible to doing what my parents really didn't want me to do, which was the aerial side.
BEN WATERWORTH: Which, I mean, this is what I love about freestyle skiing, because as an Australian who, I tried skiing once, I lasted 30 seconds, I'm like, not for me. You know, we're not exposed a lot to the skiing sports. But I then look at a mogul, I look at an aerial skiing, I'm like, why do people want to ski down bumps and destroy their knees and then do flips? And why do people want to flip in the air for a couple of seconds and then potentially crash and injure themselves? I mean, it's kind of different beasts, athletes in freestyle skiing, aren't they?
DEIDRA DIONNE: Well, and you're thinking of that with like an adult brain, like go back to 13 and like there's nothing better than like launching yourself off and losing your skis and having like an epic crash. So I think the age of like how you're assessing those risks is probably where the entry point into the sport is. And then it becomes the norm and you get good at it. And it's more of a calculated risk as you as you grow older. And fear really doesn't play in until later in your career, because fear doesn't exist when you're when you're young. It's more of this like invincibility towards who you are and what you can do.
BEN WATERWORTH: Which is fascinating then on that level to say that you sort of come from alpine skiing. So generally when we're talking to aerial skiers and they've got the trick side of things down, they're just going to learn to ski. It's kind of the opposite for you. You've got the skiing down, Pat, you need to learn how to flip and do all the tricks. I mean, is that the most challenging part or are you just kind of throwing yourself off of the jumps going like, I can flip, I can do this, I'm young, you know, I'm loving this.
DEIDRA DIONNE: So like I was so bad in the beginning. I don't have, I didn't have, and I would say throughout my career, the same like acrobatic repetition as the gymnast did. So it was always like the skiing landing, the tough landings, like that was easy for me, whereas like learning flipping and learning twisting, learning body awareness was the challenge. I would say like in a heartbeat, it's easier to teach people to ski, as opposed to teach them to flip and twist and have that body awareness. But, you know, I learned quickly, and where I excelled was I worked hard, and mentally, I was good at working through problems and making sure that when it mattered, I showed up as best as I could.
BEN WATERWORTH: Do you remember the first time you went on the jump? Like you went over the ramp?
DEIDRA DIONNE: Oh, absolutely.
BEN WATERWORTH: And what was that like? What was that experience like the first time?
DEIDRA DIONNE: Well, water ramp, first of all, so, you know, you have less of a horrible outcome, but it was just a front flip, right? So you just basically roll off the jump and do that flip and still remember the coach that walked me through it. He was a coach that stuck with me for probably like the first three or four years of my career, really taught me about goal setting, really taught me about dreaming outside of the small city that I lived in and thinking on a larger scale. And it was thrilling, right? Like there's something, confidence building about standing there and not knowing an outcome, but committing to the process and then going through that process and then realising like you could overcome that fear, overcome that anxiety, and then go back and go back up and have that anxiety all over again and have to go through that process. And I think like as a whole, that is what absolutely drove into the sport is it never got boring. Like that anxiety and that fear and that uncertainty existed with every single jump throughout your career, it got easier. And there's a skill set and repetition that made it achievable. But it was always in, it's always in your gut. And it never, it never ceased to be exciting, which is probably why you get a mix of adrenaline junkies and very rational people in the sport that on one side or the other, they're like, they're filling a void that exists outside and in real life on a day to day.
BEN WATERWORTH: Did you grow up with Olympic aspirations? Or was that sort of when you were doing Alpine that that was kind of the goal? Or when you switched kind of into aerials? Because at that point, if my maths are correct, sort of at that age when you started, this wasn't long after Lilahama when aerials made its debut at the Olympics. So was that kind of a bonus in the sport, too? If you could do well in it, you could go to an Olympic Games one day.
DEIDRA DIONNE: I grew up in a Canadian city where, like, you dreamed of marrying a hockey player. So it would say, like, I don't know.
BEN WATERWORTH: So any city in America, right? Canada, sorry. Yeah, basically.
DEIDRA DIONNE: Basically any middle sized town in Canada. But I think I was fortunate enough. Jamie Soleil, who's a figure skater, was from Red Deer. And so she went to my junior high. And so I remember watching, like, the 94 Olympics, but not necessarily, like, looking at skiing or freestyle and saying, like, that's going to be me. But understanding that people from my community, like, achieved on an international level. And then 98 is probably the first Olympics that I really consumed aerials. And I remember, like, names like Alice Super, who was, like, 14 or 15. And I mean, she's still, I think, competing, which is insane. But I remember.
BEN WATERWORTH: Was she young ever? I mean, she's still going, right? Like, it's crazy.
DEIDRA DIONNE: Yeah. And so I remember watching her in 98 and Tatiana Kochenko for Ukraine at a very young age and thinking, like, wow, they're my age. Like, I could be at the next Olympics. So I think I think Nagano was probably the first Olympics that really solidified like this is this could be achievable.
BEN WATERWORTH: That's it's crazy to think watching Olympics and then thinking that's achievable because as you say, I could be at the next Olympics. You were at the next Olympics. So it's kind of, you know, four years sounds like a long time on paper. But obviously, I can imagine for an athlete when you're going around the world every year and that's your goal, like it goes by pretty quickly. So that must be crazy to kind of look back on that and think that was your mindset during your first Olympics you're really paying attention to. And then four years later, you're standing on the podium with a medal around your neck.
DEIDRA DIONNE: And four years, I mean, can either go extremely quickly and you can have huge leaps and bounds like from 16 to 20 and being at those first Olympics or can feel like an eternity, right? A lot can happen in four years to to change that dream and change that goal. So that that first four years like watching at 15, 16 and then being there is like probably that huge, thrilling moment where you go from just competing nationally to all of a sudden competing internationally and making podiums and then and then finally walking into those Olympic Games, which is which is in and of itself a massive achievement for any athlete.
BEN WATERWORTH: In terms of competing nationally, obviously I can imagine a little bit different to what we've got here in Australia. You've got plenty of places where you can compete. Is it sort of is it like a national circuit you kind of do in Canada before you're going off to World Cups and that? Or is it essentially a case of you reach a level and you are going straight to a World Cup instead of just going around the country competing nationally?
DEIDRA DIONNE: Well, in the Canadian system, I actually didn't specialise in aerials until I was about 15. So I actually did all three events, including like ballet back in the day.
BEN WATERWORTH: So that was still a thing. We're still hoping that's going to make a return. We want to see it.
DEIDRA DIONNE: I feel like since, you know, 90s fashion is coming back, maybe ballet should as well or not even coming back this year. But yeah, so I competed nationally, like in provincial and things like Alberta Games in all of those events. And then, you know, started to compete in something called North American Cups and still did all three events. But it's funny how achievement works. I was always losing to a mogul skier named Jen Heil, who was a year younger than me. And so like quickly understanding that maybe I wasn't going to be the best at moguls. And so around 15, when I was winning aerial competitions and, you know, moving faster on the development side in that capacity, I chose that. And we used to train at a mountain called Fortress, where the Australians and the Americans would come preseason. So you would see that World Cup level. And so there was like visibility from what it looks like at a provincial and national level to seeing international competitors in their training environment, which I think was hugely part of my development. And understanding that it wasn't that far away to be training at that level and competing at that level.
BEN WATERWORTH: And was it common or is it still common for freestyle skiers to go across the disciplines? Because I mean, I can't imagine it's much like Alpine where there's not a huge difference between a downhill and a super G, whereas, I mean, there's a pretty big difference between aerials and moguls.
DEIDRA DIONNE: I think it's kind of gone, by the wayside, but I think that's unfortunate. I mean, at the heart of developing any type of skier, it is like a skiing fundamental ability. If you can ski moguls, then you can probably land pretty well out of an aerial jump. And I would say it's actually probably gone the opposite as moguls has changed towards, you know, acrobatics within moguls. You see a lot of moguls skiers learning aerials at a young age because they need that skill when they transfer over to moguls. Like they're doing double, triple, fulls. I mean, Mikhail Kingsbury is pushing the limits to try and do doubles. So you look at what they're doing in their sport, and it's almost gone the other way where they've come over and they're learning acrobatics at a young age. And Alex Bilodeau, who's also Canadian and won the, our historic gold in 2010, like he was probably the first mogul skier that had an aerial background and was able to transfer that over successfully into the moguls and kind of build that new system where that acrobatics skill needs to be inherent.
BEN WATERWORTH: Our co-host on the show, sadly couldn't be with us today, Colin. He is a mad, mad moguls fan and he travels to Calgary basically to watch the World Cup, I think every single year. And we just we can't shut him up on the show when the moguls come around. But yeah, it's I mean, freestyle skiing is obviously very close to a lot of Australians heart because it's pretty much our most successful sport when it comes to the Olympics. Obviously, we've had some pretty good aerial skiers and some pretty good mogul skiers as well. So it is one of these few winter sports in Australia that we're very familiar with. I'm just I'm just disappointed that ski ballet didn't kind of last the distance outside of the demonstration sport. Like I'm glad to see it still exists, Deidra. But what do we have to do to get it back in sort of in the Olympic schedule? Because I love those videos that float around every now and then when you see what it was like back at the Olympics. It's fun.
DEIDRA DIONNE: You know, it's so interesting is like I watch Slopestyle and I see them doing I see them doing like inherently ballet moves as they as they start to become more creative and more artistic in that event. So, I mean, does does keep LA have to come back? I don't I don't know. I'm not sure that we need more judged sports that are like very subjective. But it was you know what it was great for is it was a feeder system for for young girls into the sport. And I think that it just it spoke to like how girls interact with activity and was a feeder to all the other sports. So I think losing it probably in retrospect was was negative to freestyle skiing and and I wish more could have been done to keep it.
BEN WATERWORTH: Was it fun when you did it though like I mean, it looks like it's a fun sport.
DEIDRA DIONNE: It was it was so interesting and fun and choosing your music and like learning these like I used to spend hours doing pull flips in the summer on our front lawn, like just learning how to go upside down and practising. So yeah, you bet it was fun. Like it was it was great.
BEN WATERWORTH: What was the best song you ever performed to? Can you remember the Flintstones? Like, oh, wow. Now tell me there's video footage of this. Come on now. There's got to be.
DEIDRA DIONNE: I'm sure I'm sure fans need Dionne have it somewhere. I don't know if I'll be digitising it anytime soon.
BEN WATERWORTH: Might be something we have to keep on and push our luck with that one. Just randomly, you mentioned about growing up in Alberta, I feel like I've got to ask the standard Alberta hockey question here, because this might direct the tone of this interview moving forward. Are you a supporter reader of the two teams and are you Oilers or Flames?
DEIDRA DIONNE: Oh, that's like the toughest question for I grew up in Red Deer, which is like dead smack in the middle of bowl. So I feel like bandwagon jumping all the way. But if I had to choose, I also work in like our national broadcaster now. So I cheer for whoever drives the most revenue, which is the Toronto Maple Leafs at the moment. But my heart is my heart is probably with the Oilers. I mean, Connor Mcgavin is a special, special athlete. So anytime you get to see him.
BEN WATERWORTH: Yeah, I was going to whip my Flames jersey out behind me if you had the writing.
DEIDRA DIONNE: It's a bit I'm OK with that, too.
BEN WATERWORTH: That's OK.
DEIDRA DIONNE: I can jump. I can jump bandwagon.
BEN WATERWORTH: Yes. Well, Colin will be happy to. Colin's a Leafs fan. So kind of you've impressed one of us, at least on the on the show here today. But when it obviously came, you're progressing through the ranks. You have a pretty good rookie World Cup season, winning a medal at your first ever World Cup event. Pretty, pretty special moment. Kind of how was it sort of to go on the world stage and start entering the podium there and kind of as you're pushing towards Salt Lake, kind of, you know, the momentum of building a bit there. I mean, that must be a pretty special feeling to kind of have that happening at that point in your career.
DEIDRA DIONNE: The success early is like the greatest indicator of you're on the right path. So I think going into that season and having success really changed the narrative for myself and also probably my team that it isn't just about participating that Olympics. Like, how do you go there and come away with the medal? Like Olympics happen once every four years or this, you know, past time five, whatever. But they're just like a snapshot. And they're only a small tidbit of a career. And so being able to have that momentum and have that success going into an Olympic season and the confidence going in that it could be achievable to get a medal at any games, not necessarily just your second or just your third with experience, I think was important. And as it all played out, like hugely beneficial because you don't know what's going to happen any day in any sport at any given time. And so making sure that we went into those Olympics knowing that everybody had a chance to medal on our team and going in with that philosophy as a Canadian coaching staff and a Canadian team that it wasn't like, this person is our medal contender and these people are here for experience. Like it truly was any given person on this team could walk away with a medal or we could sweep a podium and I think that mentality was was beneficial to me because it changed the narrative from you're just going to be here and experience it to like, you better talk to everybody because you have a chance to win a medal and make sure you're prepared.
BEN WATERWORTH: Because you also get a bronze in the World Championships here before Salt Lake as well. So I mean, I can imagine that that boosts that confidence level because is aerials a sport where momentum plays a fact that if all of a sudden you're having a really good season, that you kind of go into that competition, the next one kind of feeling a bit invincible or is it kind of more of, as you were saying, their competition base? So you might be doing good in one competition, then a month later, you're kind of not having your best meet.
DEIDRA DIONNE: For me, confidence was like the differentiator. When when you're having success, you feel like you feel things more strongly. You understand where you are landing isn't isn't work. You just know where your feet are. And so when that success happens and you're getting podiums, then you're feeding off that success week in, week out. But it also is like a sport that moves locations. So there's certain locations that feel more comfortable just based on like sweetness of hill and the feel of the snow or or what have you. So I think a combination of both where you need a little bit of momentum, but also sometimes you just have places where you're better than other places based on conditions.
BEN WATERWORTH: In the lead up to Salt Lake, were there test events or World Cup events at Park City? Had you kind of competed previously at Salt Lake before the actual Olympics?
DEIDRA DIONNE: We had done, yes, one World Cup and it was my second World Cup, and I think I had a podium. So I'd already had good vibes on that location and it was just a first class facility. And growing up out west, like the snow conditions in Western North America are more aligned with what I'm used to compared to like the East, where it's heavy and icy and a little bit, I'd say more wet. I loved Utah. It was like the perfect, perfect place for good vibes for me.
BEN WATERWORTH: Do you remember that moment when you had officially qualified for the Olympics and what that feeling was like, knowing that you were officially an Olympian at that point?
DEIDRA DIONNE: Well, I don't think you're officially an Olympian until you walk into that stadium or have that first jump. So I mean, the way our system worked is it was built off podium. So as soon as I had that very first podium in my very first World Cup, like the Olympics was in the equation, and then it was just about getting some consistency, getting some experience. So being named to that team a few weeks in advance of the Olympics was it was a dream come true. Like it feels like you've achieved everything you wanted in life, but you're only 19 and you have no idea like that there's so much more to life than just this one moment. But I was incredibly proud and incredibly grateful and everything that goes along with like, at least checking off something on your dream list.
BEN WATERWORTH: And was it a case of you were able to really soak in that Olympic atmosphere? Were you so focused on the competition at the time that you weren't really doing that? Or were you able to take in the village experience? If you got to do the opening ceremony, things like that and kind of just really soak up all those little moments that make being an Olympian so special.
DEIDRA DIONNE: So I did opening ceremonies. I did the village like I did at all. And I would say I don't it was quickly like not enough just to be there to be an Olympian. Like it was to be there to win a gold medal. And so I felt, I think, more nervous. We were late in the games. Ariel's is like, you know, after second week, mid second week in 2002. So you're watching people when you're seeing like what successes compared to what not being on the podium looks like as like people come in and out of Canada House and and how that looks and feels as it plays out from, you know, an achievement level or celebration standpoint. So I I felt nervous, I'd say, in that first Olympics and also intimidated. I mean, four years out of watching so many Canadians win medals and meeting those Canadians and like being in the same place as as basically heroes that I'd watch for a country and celebrated. So it was a relief when we like took ourselves, we took ourselves out of the village right before the competition, and it went back to just being about aerials and what I had to do. And that was a huge relief for me.
BEN WATERWORTH: And I can imagine, too, being so close to Canada. I mean, it's the closest you can have to a home games without being a home game. So, you know, do you have any sort of family, you know, coming down to watch you as well, friends, because it is so close to home.
DEIDRA DIONNE: So my family, like my two brothers, my parents came and then I had we had a rule. You know, they say plan everything. And so I had my mum is like the point person for friends and family. But my my three best friends from from home wanted to surprise me at the Olympics. My mum's like, this is a horrible idea. So they were supposed to surprise, but they drove all night and had quite the adventure driving from Alberta down to Utah as, you know, young teenagers. And I wasn't supposed to see them because they were supposed to stay hidden. But they like had all the times wrong and they didn't know where they were. So they were like six hours early for competitions. They were the only people there that day that were like dressed up and they had signed. So they were very noticeable. But I did have I did have people that I loved and that had supported me through both the ups and the downs in the crowd. And I'm so thankful that I had that for both my Olympic experiences.
BEN WATERWORTH: Do you remember going back to what I asked before about the very first jump you ever did? Do you remember that first jump at the Olympics when it came to qualifying for the for the final? And what that feeling was like when you're at the top of the hill staring down and there you are. You are an officially Olympian at that point.
DEIDRA DIONNE: I absolutely do. Like those those nerves I think are something that you can't even describe. I'm always nervous for competition and and shaky and the heart is constantly like beating out of control. But it was on a whole different level there. And and just standing up there and and really going through both like what you imagined it would be, but then implementing all the exercises to try and bring it down. And then that first jump, I mean, it went as great as it could have gone. I I did exactly the jump that I knew that I needed to do. And that was kind of the building block to say, OK, like now there's there's there's not any chaos. Now it's just about implementing the plan and and getting into finals was implementing that plan regardless of of the standing. But if I remember correctly, like I was exactly in, I think, in fifth position going in. And so I was I was right where I felt I I needed to be.
BEN WATERWORTH: And of course, in the the mood amongst you and the two Veronica's must have been pretty good then to have all three of you make the final.
DEIDRA DIONNE: As you said, the possibility of a podium sweep was well on the cards at that point for our coaching staff, like unbelievable and and and wonderful because, you know, I say this so often and I truly believe it. And especially as I get older and more reflective on it. But like my coaches and our coaches, because we all had the same coaching staff, woke up every day trying to make our dreams of winning medals come true. And so to be in that moment and to have three of us, which is like, you know, 25% chance of a medal in that final competition, it's also their dreams and it's funding for the sport and recognition for the association that's invested in you. So to be in that position, I think we felt great. I think there was a lot of nerves going from like semi finals to finals just because you're halfway there, but you still have to implement and you still have to perform. And it's great to have been in the finals, but you have to show up again and make sure that it's not for naught.
BEN WATERWORTH: Because at that point, too, Canada had never medalled in women's aerials either. So it's kind of that possibility to be part of history, essentially, as you're saying, a 25% chance of bringing a medal home for Canada, which, you know, obviously means a lot to the sport, means a lot to things like funding and everything along those lines, too.
DEIDRA DIONNE: Absolutely. And the men's program had been so strong always. And the women's probably, you know, in record books or medal counting, like not as strong, but an opportunity for us to really put a stake in the ground and also alleviate some of the pressure from the men. I know on the mogul side, we didn't win a medal in that games and we'd had a few fourth place. So there was already that like feeling of, oh, we're so close. So knowing that like nobody had really stood on the podium yet added a level of pressure to all three of us. But I think, you know, speaking on behalf of both, you know, Big V and Little V, as we called them, I think we all felt pretty good going into the finals.
BEN WATERWORTH: And what's that period like then? It's a two day turnaround, if I'm not mistaken, kind of from the semi to the final. What do you do to, I guess, stay in the zone? Is there something mentally that you kind of do? Do you limit interacting with people for distractions? Do you just put on some tunes in the village? Like, how do you kind of keep yourself focused ahead of an Olympic final when there's two days in between?
DEIDRA DIONNE: You know what? I don't even remember that time in between now that there was two days. I'm sure I just like, it probably had MTV Live back in, like, that's what was so cool about the US like being in the US back then. I think it was, I think it was just like, you know, don't be in the zone the whole time. Like, I was 19, I think we probably just did treatment and visualisation and whatever we had to do. And the rest of it was relax and know that, like, you can't spend two days thinking about a moment, two days from now, you're going to be exhausted by the time you get there. So making sure you're doing everything to just stay in the moment of as is and not think too far ahead.
BEN WATERWORTH: And is it a case when you're competing in a competition like the Olympics or World Championships, anything, are you a nervous competitor? And is that sort of a benefit to you? I know a lot of athletes sometimes build on those nerves and they kind of they help them. But sometimes it's the opposite. I mean, kind of how do you deal with that side of things when it comes to a competition like the Olympics?
DEIDRA DIONNE: I love the nerves like I definitely needed that to to elevate the importance in the performance. And I say that with like the caveat that in times those nerves can be debilitating. So finding that like right balance between I'm excited, I'm ready, I can do this, I'm engaged, but not allowing those nerves to be all encompassing. So, you know, I greatly remember that the change in like the body at that games where you're just so on edge because you're just all your heart is beating, your mind is racing. And so it was really about relaxing those nerves and understanding that even on competition day, it's a long day like you do warm up, you train and not reading into a crash or not reading into a thought or a negative feeling or whatever it is, but really just staying in that moment, because those jumps are three or four seconds long, and you're there for hours. So you're going to have every thought in the books during those hours. But what matters is really how you show up in those four or five seconds.
BEN WATERWORTH: I'm just looking here at the final, and this is an incredibly stacked final looking in terms of who actually competed in that when it comes to particularly Olympic experience, obviously with World Cup and everything there. I mean, outside yourself, Veronica and Alyssa obviously being on the podium, you've got the great Alice Hooper is right there performing. You got Zuna Nan, who got a medal in Nagano. You got Leigh Neiner, of course, great skier. You've got Lydia, not Lassler at the time, but obviously now Lassler, now two time Olympic medallist, her first Olympics at that time back in 2002. I mean, an incredibly stacked field. I don't have the research in front of me here, Deidra, to say if this is the most stacked women's aerial final at the Olympics in history. But that's a pretty impressive field to look back on now, who was competing in that final.
DEIDRA DIONNE: Yeah, I have. I'm fortunate. I mean, all of those women were incredible in their own right. So to call those my peers and my friends is pretty special. And as you named off, you know, a lot of those names, like those are women that I competed against, but we also learned from Daly. So, you know, Lydia back in 2002 was like, she was just breaking into the sport and she you could just see, like, the amount of determination and and like force that she was going to be. And she was so early. And yet she, like, showed up to win. And you're like, hey, wait a minute, you've been here for like a minute. And so I yeah, like that was a that was a wonderful time in women's aerials. And it's continued to be amazing. Like, I watched the women today, like pushing the boundaries and you see, like, Laura and Danny, and they're out there and they're doing triples. And it's like nothing for them. And it's it's incredible to know that, like, with each passing of time, there's been a generation of women that have pushed the sport and pushed each other to be better. And that's I think that's incredible.
BEN WATERWORTH: We are obviously very big fans of Lydia in this country, obviously, for a variety of reasons. Obviously, what she did back in Sochi to get her bronze was almost better than what she did to get a gold. And a fun fact, I don't know if you know this about her, pretty decent survivor player. She's been on two seasons of Australian Survivor. You did follow it, did you?
DEIDRA DIONNE: Oh, yeah. Yeah. If I could have put bets on Lydia, I mean, I would have I would have like bet my house that she could have taken any of those competitions. I was sometimes being too strong in those types of competitions. It backfires on you. But I mean, I'm a huge fan, too. There's there's very few people that you meet in life that are as dynamic and as capable and as what made what makes Lydia so special is she achieves by bringing everyone along with her. And I can't say that about every competitor in sport where, especially women's sport, where often the atmosphere is built to pit you against one another, and you're taught that you need to achieve in spite of. And Lydia, you know, she just called bullshit on all that right from the beginning. It was like, we're going to be better together and I'm going to cheer for you as much as you're going to cheer for me. And she brought the sport along, but she brought people along with her in like the most positive, inspiring way possible. And I think that is what makes her so different and so special. And she's just, I mean, you'll never meet somebody that is as confident and as dominant and as just willing to get her hands dirty to say, like, what do we need to do to get there?
BEN WATERWORTH: Yeah, absolutely. We love her. We're very proud of her in this country, for sure.
DEIDRA DIONNE: As we should be.
BEN WATERWORTH: Now, the competition itself, you get an 88.98 on that first jump. But in the second jump, you get the highest score out of anyone, 100.28, get the bronze. What's that feeling like on jump two when you realise that you're going to get a medal? I mean, is it a pretty exciting feeling that you've achieved that? I mean, are you disappointed that you don't get the gold? Like, I mean, how are the sort of the feelings when you walk away from the Olympic Games with a medal of any colour, really?
DEIDRA DIONNE: Well, it's not as linear as that, I guess, the issue being like I ran fifth last, right? So I had the best jump I've ever done and the highest score on that jump. And so I catapulted in the first, which, you know, like you're like, amazing. Like I showed up, I did everything I could. I did my best jumps like I did everything I could when it mattered the most. And then you like, wait, and so it was excruciating is how I would describe it. Ronna came down next and her score from the first jump like put her just ahead of me. And so as much as you're like thrilled, you're now in second, right? Like I'm so happy and she had come off a knee surgery. So to see her succeed, it was great. And then Alisa was next. So now it's like, all right, everybody's passing you. So Alisa goes ahead of both of us. And so now it becomes extremely stressful because it's... You prepare to think that I'm going to go there and I'm going to jump to like my greatest ability. And if I get those scores, like the thought is you're going to win. And what you don't prepare for is necessarily that like you can do all of that and potentially walk away without a medal or be fourth place or fifth place. So I sat back and like as much as I was Alan and Olga, so to Belarus and Russia were left to go. And as much as you're like hoping everyone does their best, I mean, let's be real. You're also hoping they drag a hand or they slap back. Because at this point, you're holding on to a bronze medal. And so it did play out that way. And Alan had a slap back and she was unable to land and then Olga was up doing some triple flips and her landing percentage wasn't high. So I was just like holding Veronica, hoping that she didn't pull a rabbit out of her hat. And then in that moment, like it's pure joy, like especially when, as I said, you look at like your teammate and your coaches who are just like, their dreams happen through you. And importantly for me, like look at my parents and my brothers who are jumping up and down. And my dad looks like he's almost had a heart attack as he's like witnessed all of this happen. And like through it all, the family is there on the back and not just supporting you from the financial side, but also the emotional side. Like I left my parents' house at 14 years old to go chase a dream of going to the Olympics and went to school through distance learning before internet was really a thing. And so they trusted me in every aspect of like carving this path for myself. And they didn't know anything about freestyle skiing. And all they hoped was that at the end of it, I would feel like what I really needed to achieve was met. And so watching them know that that risk that they had taken and that it was worth it and that they were so proud was so special.
BEN WATERWORTH: And was it a special homecoming? Do you and Jamie then go back to your high school as gold and bronze medallists? And were there any athletes on the team then from your same high school? Is this some special high school we should all be knowing about producing these Olympic medallists?
DEIDRA DIONNE: Well, ironically, I think there was like seven Olympians from my hometown at those games. And so, you know, Jeremy Weatherspoon, who's like the greatest speed skater of all time, was also from from our our midsize little Alberta town. So I think like, yeah, there was a huge homecoming and and Jamie wins the gold. I mean, she she's in the history books for all sorts of reason around that gold medal. So it was an interesting Olympics for sure. And yeah, like we I think it just changes the narrative of what's possible when you grow up in a community that has facilities and invests in sports and believes that that sport is important to the development of people.
BEN WATERWORTH: I have to ask my standard go to question for our medallists. What do you do with the medal? Is it is it on display? So you got some medals on display behind you, but is the Olympic one is that somewhere on display?
DEIDRA DIONNE: It is on display. It's actually not right now because I now I have two kids, one's four. And so he witnessed his first Olympics, this go around with Tokyo. And so he wore the medal to daycare, which was interesting. But so like if he wants to wear it, then he'll just throw it on. And it's it's fun to see it through like the lens of of somebody that just thinks that people go to the Olympics and that everybody like goes and wins medals. So it's it's been fun to watch it through a next generation.
BEN WATERWORTH: Now, the amazing part of your story, of course, Deidra, which I'm sure many people are aware of, is what happened in the lead up to to Rin, obviously with your broken neck, which I believe did that happen in Australia? Was that Mount Buller?
DEIDRA DIONNE: Yeah. Yeah.
BEN WATERWORTH: On behalf of Australia, I'm sorry that that's where it happened.
DEIDRA DIONNE: No, I'm so fortunate it happened in Australia. I mean, it could have happened in many different countries with less established medical facilities and experience. So I am so fortunate.
BEN WATERWORTH: Were you then in Australia for a while with your recovery? Was that what, Melbourne, I'm guessing, would have been the closest big city where you would have had to go to?
DEIDRA DIONNE: Yes, I was at the Royal Victoria Hospital, is that correct, in Melbourne? And so, yeah, airlifted out of Buller and spent four days figuring out what the next path was, and then had a C4, C5 fusion where they basically took my hip bone and they turned it into my neck bone with an anterior and posterior opening so that they could fuse my spine. And I honestly, like, the medical team in that hospital were unbelievable and so, so confident. And I'm actually incredibly lucky it happened in Australia because the neurosurgeon who did the surgery in Canada, that surgery is done very rarely, but I'm told in Australia, because of all the equestrian, and they do about four times or five times the amount of final fusion in Australia than they did in Canada at that time. So his experience was second to none, and he was very forward thinking, and it wasn't like, oh, you may never do this again. It was like, yeah, you'll get back up there. Like, I'm so good at my craft. There's no chance that you're not walking under this and be successful again.
BEN WATERWORTH: And five months later, you're at another Olympics. I mean, I can't imagine that when you come out of surgery and everything that's happened, I mean, are you that sort of so focused on your goal? If this is what my surgeon is saying, I'm going to the Olympics. Are there moments of doubt in that period? Maybe I'm not going to be able to make it to the Olympics in five months time.
DEIDRA DIONNE: I mean, I was a shell of a human at that Olympics, but I would say the goal wasn't, okay, how do I get there and win a medal? I mean, that's externally what you're saying to yourself. But I think at that moment where you almost lose everything, it's about redefining and establishing that you're not changed or you're still okay as a person. So I just think when I laid there and thought, okay, I could not be walking, that's a legitimate outcome that could have happened. How do I not have this steel, everything that I loved and everything that I was before? And so getting back up and getting to the Olympics was almost like my personal way of proving to myself that this wasn't going to define who I was or what I'm capable of. And so I think like, was the goal get back to the Olympics and win a medal? Like, yeah, that's what I told everyone. But I think internally it was like, how do I just reestablish that even though chaos happened and everything was taken out of my control and I was scared out of my mind, and I thought I may never walk again or live the life that skiing had given me, that this was a way to prove that if I could get there, then this is just a small little hill and not a mountain that I need to climb. And honestly, the proudest thing I've ever done in my life, like the Olympic medal is great, but that journey and feeling like that low and understanding that I was scared and not capable or not as strong and still having to get up there and go through the process was like an amazing life lesson to understand like what real stress is. And what really like a real low is and what rebuilding looks like. And having to find success and what others would look at as a failure, going there and not even coming close to finals. I think the only person I beat on was Lydia who blew her knee at those Olympics. So like it was a pretty low point for both of us. But like finding success personally in that is probably a huge growing moment that continues to fuel me today.
BEN WATERWORTH: Because I can imagine that, yeah, as you're saying, like winning an Olympic medal is great, but I mean, just overcoming all of that, that you just achieved in such a short space of time. I mean, different sense of achievement, but it's still something that, yeah, as you're saying, kind of you look back on and think of both moments weirdly with a positive light.
DEIDRA DIONNE: You have to, right? Like, the world couldn't define success as standing on an Olympic podium, but if I only found success in what everybody else told me was great, then it'd be a pretty empty life. And so I think that learning that lesson through sport of saying, like, I need to understand what is an achievement for myself personally and then carry myself with that, with that judgement, as opposed to walking in a room and having people celebrate you for an external achievement that maybe was really easy. Like, that day at the Olympics in 2002, everything went according to plan and it was easy, and I made it easy, but I wasn't given any obstacles like I was in 2006. And overcoming those obstacles is actually what true success is for an individual. And so knowing that, going into life after sport and the career that I'm in now, it's like, you know, test me. Throw whatever you want at me, and I'll be able to shake it off and continue to succeed. And that wasn't learned by winning a medal. That was learned by overcoming everything to just get there in the end.
BEN WATERWORTH: Which I want to talk a little bit about sort of that post-Olympic career in just a moment, but before I get to that, Vancouver, obviously, you were on track for it, but then I believe you were diagnosed with a temporal lobe brain tumour. Is that correct? And what sort of what happened there and kind of basically how, I mean, how close was that to the Olympics? Well, you sort of this gets discovered and everything around that.
DEIDRA DIONNE: So I believe it was like September of 2009. So going into the games and I had a seizure in my sleep overnight and woke up and had hit the bedside table and nothing had happened or I hadn't hit my like it wasn't concussion related. It wasn't trauma related. It was just a nighttime seizure. And so it took a long time to figure out what was happening. But it was the first episode and as they did many, many scans, they found that I basically have a birthmark on my right temporal lobe and I had never had any symptoms. But at that point, my brain was just, I think, saying like, get out, like get out. And so it was a life moment that was hard to take because Vancouver Olympics, Home Olympics. But I was on a different place in my career where I was holding on as opposed to building to achievement. And so I think this was a clean break that made it really simple. Like it was over. And I had to find new passions, new space, and figure out who I was without the sport. And fortunate for me that I didn't have it to fall back on. So it wasn't like, oh, I'll just do another competition or one more year. It was over. And it was time to move on.
BEN WATERWORTH: Which, yeah, again, kind of overcoming that diversity. September before an Olympics is not a very good month for you, I'm feeling right now.
DEIDRA DIONNE: Or is it a time of change?
BEN WATERWORTH: Well, maybe.
DEIDRA DIONNE: It's all how you look at it.
BEN WATERWORTH: It's a sign, it's a sign. But you turn that into, you mentioned previously about sort of working for the National Broadcasting CBC. I believe you've sort of been part of Olympic coverage in the past. I mean, what's that like kind of transitioning from an athlete then into being part of the broadcast then? Because we just saw in Tokyo here in Australia, we had some of the best expert commentators I'd ever seen kind of transition. And they really, obviously, your role is to bring that element to us watching at home to kind of understand the sport more. I mean, how do you find that transition, bringing your expertise as an Olympian and a competitor to bring that out to the audience watching at home?
DEIDRA DIONNE: Well, it's interesting. That's like my passion project. So I do that, you know, for CBC here in Canada around aerials, because there's just not that many experts that can break down and analyse a quint-twisting triple backflip. So definitely, like my career, I actually work at Rogers Media, which is our largest broadcast partner. And I'm in the boardroom. I'm the senior leadership team on that side. So I went to law school and work in a business role there on strategy. And so I live like sports media as a whole every day. And so the Olympics is passion and the fact that I get to go and like do what I would do in my living room, but bring the sport to Canadians who realistically like only witnessed the sport at the Olympics. It's fun because what we see as a trained acrobatic eye and how I value and look at a jump is so different than someone that's never seen it before. It just looks like chaos and then like ski out or like crash. And so breaking it down and bringing like some education to what goes into that moment for athletes is a unique position to be in. And I'm lucky that I think I'll be doing it for these upcoming games. The downside is like, I still get emotionally invested. So to remember that like I'm not in my living room and how I would react to somebody potentially not having success or like who I'm secretly cheering for is not probably the best way to bring the sport to Canadians. So having a filter is the challenge that exists with that.
BEN WATERWORTH: I remember vividly back in Pyeongchang when David Morris sadly, we still think got robbed of his score in that and we had Jackie Cooper, I think, trying to do her very best at, you know, calmly explain what was going on while every single Australian is throwing the remotes at the TV. So we need people like you Deidra to kind of calm us down in the best possible way when we're getting very angry at judging in your sport.
DEIDRA DIONNE: Yeah, and it's not always explainable. I think that's that's the tricky part about being in a subjective sport and especially when you're calling it from not being there in person. Like, so what you see on screen doesn't necessarily translate to like what the judges see from the angle. They see it in person because you just have a you have a complete different perspective and different angles and obviously instant replay, which they don't have.
BEN WATERWORTH: Before we let you go, I need to quickly ask about Beijing. Obviously, as Australian, we're quite quite keen on a certain Laura Peele to see how she goes, obviously being the reigning world champion. But I mean, who else should we be keeping an eye on outside of us being biased Aussies and the likes of a Laura and a Danny? Are there any other ones out there that we really should be keeping an eye on ahead of Beijing?
DEIDRA DIONNE: I think Laura is fantastic, but I watched Danny jump and I think that there's never been a greater talent out there. So I'd love to see her be able to bring it at the Olympic stage and just be able to channel what it takes to bring your best in the biggest moment ever, because she is a special talent. And then, you know, I looked at Belarus and say there are some impressive women out there doing some triple flips and with Hannah Huskova coming back, I think it's going to be an incredible final. And then finally, like China winning gold in China, they have yet to win an Olympic gold. And that is something that who knows what they've been working on with COVID. They've been training so hard in their own country. They haven't had a lot of international experiences that can benefit them. Is it not like all of that training and all of that inner competition with their team? Will it actually like translate to being ready and confident on the Olympic site or will that lack of international experience over the last year and a half handcuff them? I don't know.
BEN WATERWORTH: Well, we're looking forward to it so much to see how it all plays out. Deidra, if people want to follow your journey, kind of what you're up to, social media, website, anything that people can sort of ask up to date with what you're up to?
DEIDRA DIONNE: I mean, I'm on Instagram, but only if you want to see my dog and my kids. But I live a pretty behind the scenes life here in Canada, and I do really love like shaping the industry from the boardroom where I think, you know, so often as an athlete, you're taught to that the spotlight lives on the court. But I strongly believe the longevity in a career and making change happens like in the boardroom. So striving to make those changes behind the scenes now as opposed to on the field of play.
BEN WATERWORTH: Fantastic. Well, it's been an absolute pleasure to be able to learn about your journey and everything else to do with your Olympic experiences and everything else in between. I'm sure our Canadian listeners will be looking forward to seeing and hearing you in a short amount of time come the Beijing coverage. But learn a lot today, Deidra. It's been a pleasure to speak to you a little bit more about the sport in your career and Off The Podium today. So thank you very much.
DEIDRA DIONNE: Thanks, Ben, and good luck with the podcast. Hope you keep doing what you guys are doing. It's fun to listen.
BEN WATERWORTH: And a massive, massive thanks to Deidra there. A lot of fun learning about that and learning about the sport itself, of course. And hearing about those hopes, potentially, speaking up Danny and Laura, head of the Beijing Olympics, two former guests on this show, of course. And we know the track record when it comes to me and interviewing Australians and the lack of success that has happened at Olympics since. So we are crossing those fingers that that gets broken, because we have a guest coming very soon who also is a very large medal chance for Australia at the Olympics. And yeah, I probably shouldn't be saying these things out loud. Should I just start jinxing it further? But big thanks to Deidra. A lot of fun, great chat there. And in the meantime, if you want to start today with all these interviews who we've got coming up and of course our Beijing coverage coming very, very soon, search for Off The Podium on all podcast platforms and you can find us there, subscribe, leave some feedback. We'd love to know what you think of the show and everything else in between. And social media, of course, too. You can go back and see what we've had on the show, track down some old interviews, interact with us, let us know what you're thinking of the show and everything else too. Search for Off The Podium on Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook. And that's how you can stay up to date with us. That simple. We're also so close to our 200th episode. Can you believe it? It feels like we were just doing our 150th episode, but it'll be another clip show for you. We're gonna go over the best bits from episodes 151 through 199, all the interviews that we've had, all the other fun little chats that we've had with Colin and Jarrod along the way too. So stay tuned for that as well. Big thanks again to Deidra. Big thanks again to you, the listener, for listening to the show. My name is Ben. Special shout out as always to Jason Momoa. And as always to Go Left.
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