Diana Ford is a pleasant, shy, well-spoken young lady. But when she hits the wrestling mat, things change.
In a sport that demands physical power, tremendous athletic ability and determination, Ford has shown she's one of the best female wrestlers in the country as she recently captured her weight division (52 kilograms) at the Canadian Juvenile National Wrestling Championships in Whitby.
"My goal this year was to make the junior national team and I achieved that goal...winning the juvenile nationals was just a nice added bonus," said Ford. "Winning nationals is something I was really thinking about since making the national team, but looking back, it is a pretty cool thing."
Ford, a Grade 12 student at Chelmsford Valley District Composite School, moved to the Greater Sudbury area from the Annapolis Valley in Nova Scotia two years ago. Her mother Joan is originally from Sudbury and decided to move back to this area in large part because of her daughter's tremendous potential as a wrestler.
"She knew there was a lot better coaching and more competition in Ontario...that's just one of the reasons we decided to move back to Sudbury," she said.
Looking back, Ford has "no idea" why she took up wrestling, except for the fact her older brother Shaune used to compete.
"It's a sport not a lot of girls get involved in, especially down in Nova Scotia," she said. "I tried it and liked it right away and I've been pretty serious about it for the past few years."
Cory Robinson, her coach in Nova Scotia, knew about the success of the Rayside-Balfour Wrestling Club and coaches Paul Berthiaume and Andy Lalonde. Ford has been the star member of the local club since she joined two years ago.
Before winning the juvenile nationals, Ford placed second at the provincials back in January.
When asked to describe her style, Ford admits she's physically stronger than most of her competitors and uses an aggressive style which showcases her power and strength.
"I guess you would have to say I'm very aggressive and I can outlast my opponents...I like to put my opponents under pressure from the time the match starts," she said. "I like to think I'm in pretty good shape and I like to wear down my opponents."
To get to the level she's at takes tremendous dedication.
Full story in this Wednesday's issue of Northern Life
newspaper.