Onslow diver shines at national tournament

Onslow woman Eliza Cole has come away from a national diving tournament with a series of new medals to add to her already-crowded trophy cabinet.

The 32-year-old GP joined almost 200 divers from across the nation, including 21 from WA, in Perth last week to compete in the Australian Age Diving Championships.

Competing in the Masters 25-34 years age division, Cole won gold in the 1m springboard event, silver in the 3m springboard, silver in platform and finished fourth in synchronised diving.

She was the only diver from regional WA to compete at the event.

Cole, who moved to Onslow in November, has been diving since she was 11 and has placed in numerous international and national competitions, including winning three titles at the 2015 World Masters.

“I got involved in diving through my school, where it was a school sport, then I started doing it more recreationally and just stayed involved and did lots of classes outside of school as well as in it,” she said.

“It’s one of those sports that is focused on that young and teen age group and people generally leave the sport, but I didn’t leave — I kept it up because I really loved it and I stuck at it and it made me a better diver.”

Cole said she loved competing in diving events because of the camaraderie and was pleased with her results this year.

As the judge co-ordinator for Diving WA, she also served as the championships’ chief referee.

Having previously lived in Busselton and Kalgoorlie, as well as Perth, Cole said it was difficult to train in the country if there were no diving facilities available, as in Onslow.

“With my work I have moved around a fair bit and have lived in a lot of regional areas where there are no diving boards,” she said.

“I rely a lot on muscle memory, because my body knows how to go through the motions, so it’s about me being fit and strong and using that muscle memory to my advantage.”

Cole said Diving WA was concerned that diving facilities at regional WA pools were “dropping off”, affecting the development of divers in country areas, and the association was pushing for more facilities around the State.