Dianna Trudgian (nee Ley) looks back on Sydney 2000 Paralympics 20 years on

BEAU GREENWAY: Have you taken time to look back at the Sydney Games 20 years on?

DIANNA TRUDGIAN: I pulled out my photo albums and there's so many things you forget that come back so quickly when you see a photograph. I recently went through a lot of my fan mail and it just prompted that meander down the Sydney Games memory lane. I kept every one of the letters the kids wrote and they're so important to me. Most of the kids were from the Albury-Wodonga area and I prioritised getting back to them. I even received a letter from WA, so it was lovely to know a child had chosen me to write to. It's a really powerful thing and I would say it's the same for all athletes.

BG: Were you training out of Albury in the lead-up?

DT: Most of my training was done out of Albury and we were so lucky at that time to have Frank Hohmann as the head coach of Albury Swimming Club. He's one of Australia's top swimming coaches and at the time we had (Sydney 2000 Olympians) Jactina (van Lint), Clementine (Stoney) coming through. There was a lot of other swimmers in my vintage who went on to study in the United States in particular and their education was paid for through their swimming scholarship. That was all Frank who enabled that to happen. He was so dedicated and still is. He still shows up on the pool deck and he's 80. He's a pretty amazing guy and just has so much energy. People even now talk about the Frank Hohmann era, it was such a special time in the Albury Swimming Club life.

BG: Can you recall what the atmosphere was like?

DT: It stays with me so much because you're in a home crowd and there were so many Australians there who were very enthusiastic about barracking for everyone. Once you're inside a pool, you've got the added element of the acoustics. All my other competitions like Commonwealth Games and world championships, because so many were international, they didn't have the same intensity of sound that comes through when you're about to race. The Sydney Games will always be pretty special for that reason.

BG: Did you feel as though you were in good enough form to finish with a medal?

DT: For me it was always about doing better than I had in my previous swim. It's something I would really encourage now as a parent. It's not necessarily about getting a medal at the end, but how you perform relative to yourself. Even though I was quietly confident I would place in the top three, I was more pleased at the end of the race that I had totally smashed my PB. It's a mentality that remained for all of my swimming career. Even the world championships when I won those two gold medals, it was the fact I had done better than I ever had before.

ALSO IN SPORT:

BG: Did you feel any added pressure in front of a home crowd?

DT: I really didn't feel added pressure in front of the home crowd. I was always pretty confident I would perform well because I had such a great coach. Frank (Hohmann) always prepared me really well for swims and he was also very reassuring. He'd tell me 'Di, you've worked really hard for this and it's going to pay off'. I never underperformed at a major event and I think a lot of it comes down to Frank's guidance.

BG: Did the crowd give you added motivation?

DT: I was so lucky to have so many special people in my life show up on pool deck. We actually had a large cohort of kids from my old high school (The Scots School Albury) and they have a primary school part and there were busloads of kids who came up. Just knowing there were people there you were performing for I think gives you that added element of motivation. They made these beautiful signs that said 'Go Dianna' where each kid held up a separate letter. I remember feeling so proud that I had so many people who cared about how I went.

BG: Was there a reason you didn't compete at any more Paralympics?

DT: By the time I finished high school, I'd achieved everything I wanted to in the sport. I competed at a Paralympic Games, I was lucky enough to get onto a Commonwealth Games team and we were the first elite athletes with a disability to be awarded medals that actually counted towards the tally. In 2002, I had the Commonwealth Games in July and in December I competed at the world champs where I won two gold. I'm a big fan of leaving on a high and by that stage I was looking at university and there were a lot of other things I wanted to pursue, so I was really happy to walk away.

BG: What has kept you busy since retiring from swimming?

DT: When I left Albury I went on to become a high school science teacher and I just loved it. It was challenging, but there's some things you just can't describe in terms of enjoyment in teaching. I didn't stay in teaching for very long because once I had my own children, they were going to be my priority. Teaching requires a lot of energy, so I stepped away from the classroom when my first child was born and since then I've been very engaged in the community (in Canberra). I teach swimming and that's my way of giving back if you like.

BG: In 2017 you donated back you Paralympic and world championship medals to the club, did you enjoy that?

DT: It was nice to be back on the pool deck and seeing the kids swim. I love going back to that pool and I take my kids there when we come back on summer holidays. I've swam in a lot of pools all over the world and the Albury pool will remain a pretty special place for me. I don't know what it is, but when you swim in the Albury pool there's no other outdoor pool like it.

BG: Do get back to Albury often?

DT: I love coming back to Albury and catching up with all of those people who were very instrumental in me realising success in swimming. It will always be my second home and a place that will also be full of very special and happy memories. I'm truly lucky to have had that time in Albury when I did.