Bernard keeping focused
Aug. 6, 2008 - Regina Leader-Post
By Tim Switzer
Ali Bernard lived the high life in the Rocky Mountains.
The University of Regina Cougars wrestler spent July in Colorado Springs, Colo., preparing for the Olympic Games in Beijing along with the rest of the U.S. team.
"It's a different mindset here," Bernard, who hails from New Ulm, Minn., said recently. "They kind of cater to us, on the wrestling mat and off, just to make sure we have what we need to compete at our best. We work hard but it's worth it and we get a lot of perks too."
It's a long way from CIS wrestling where budget limitations keep the perks to a minimum, although Bernard points out the U of R's wrestling facility is one of the best she's seen.
Such perks though are somewhat of a necessity to give Bernard and her teammates, all of whom are first-time Olympians, a shot at a gold medal.
Bernard is to wrestle in the 72-kilogram weight class. She surprised much of the U.S. wrestling world when she won the tournament to earn a berth in the U.S. trials even though she went in seeded fourth. That win earned her a trip to the final at the trials where Bernard topped Katie Downing 2-0 in a best-of-three series. She might even take that underdog role into Beijing.
"I just take it as a compliment," said Bernard, 22. "I came out ready to wrestle and wanted it more than they did."
Now comes the part where she has to get ready to wrestle in front of more people than she ever has before. Bernard has had success at international tournaments before. She is a two-time gold medallist at the world junior championships (2003 and 2005). A little more locally, she is also a four-time CIS champion.
Given that, she seems to have her wits about her as she gets ready to depart for China.
"You want to stay calm and treat it like any other tournament," said Bernard. "I'm going out to win and not going to get all nervous or anything just because it's the Olympics.
"I'll look back after the tournament and say, 'That's awesome. The Olympics.' Right now I have to stay calm and wrestle like I would any other tournament. It's the biggest tournament I've ever wrestled in and I'm sure there will be some shocks when I get there. But I'm still trying to stay focused."
Bernard is to be joined in Beijing by her mother Sue, dad Rocky, three sisters and one brother.
And she wants to make sure their stay is a busy one full of watching their daughter and sister on the mat. The Olympic tournament is a single-knockout format.
"The first match is everything," said Bernard. "You lose in that, you're done and you went all the way to China for one match. You have to be prepared."
Much like Bernard has been through her four seasons with the U of R. Given that relationship, there is a part of Bernard that feels she is representing Regina and the U of R, even though she is wrestling for another country.
"I love all my teammates -- we're like family," said Bernard. "We spend a lot of our time together and I'm pretty sure most of them are cheering for me even though I'm American."
No doubt every member of the U of R athletics family wants to see a gold medal grace the halls of the Centre for Kinesiology, Health and Sport. So would Bernard.
"Of course I want a gold medal," she said. "I don't know what kind of athlete I would be if I went in saying, 'I want a bronze.' "
Still, she isn't going to head into the tournament letting such thoughts fill her head.
"I'm sure I could get a big head about this if I blew things out of proportion," said Bernard. "But I decided I would treat it like any other tournament and stay focused."