Her longish hair is still wet from an early morning training session at the Olympic pool in Montreal.
Just a few hours earlier, 22-year old Mia Vallée of Beaconsfield, Que., had got off a plane from south Florida where she attended convocation at the University of Miami to accept her undergraduate degree in marine biology.
You might say Canada’s next great diver has an affinity for water.
“When I was a kid, we would always go on vacation to this one Caribbean island and instead of laying out tanning like a normal family we would go off-road and find a couple of beaches and go snorkeling for hours,” she enthuses.
“My mom wanted us to know how the ecosystem works and how the world works. So, when I went to Miami to be a diver, they told me I had to choose what I was going to study. And I decided it might as well be marine biology. If it’s going to work somewhere, it’s going to work here. So far, it’s been a good decision.”
WATCH | What to expect from Canada’s next generation of divers at worlds:
CBC’s Brittany Maclean talks about the next ones like Mia Vallée and Nathan Somber-Murray, and what to expect from them during the diving portion at the World Aquatics Championships from Japan.
It’s been a fortuitous career choice for Vallée, who has surfaced as a three-time All-American, an NCAA champion, and collegiate record holder while competing with the Hurricanes and is about to enter graduate studies in her academic field.
On the international level, she broke through with two medals at her first World Aquatics Championships in Budapest last summer by claiming one-metre springboard bronze and three-metre silver.
She is the only Canadian female diver to win two individual medals at the same edition of the world championships and in Fukuoka, Japan seems poised to hit her mark again.
WATCH | Path to Paris, featuring Mia Vallée:
Watch the Path to Paris feature on Canadian diver Mia Vallée of Beaconsfield, Que.
But as a 17-year-old, Vallée tired of the rigours of endless practice and repetition, deciding to quit the sport in order to explore other aspects of life.
“I felt like I never really had a childhood you know. Since the time I was a ten-year-old I was diving and that was about it,” she says reflectively.
“Three to five hours a day. I never hung out with friends after school, I did homework on the weekends. I had all kinds of curiosity but for what? The social aspect of the sport has a lot of impact on me and always has. I just wasn’t feeling good looking at my environment.”
Key to success
In retrospect, like all successful athletes, Vallée fought hard to achieve balance and discovered it at the University of Miami under the direction of distinguished coach and mentor Randy Ableman, who has been at the helm of the Hurricanes diving program for 34 years.
Vallée’s most recent performances are proof that she has found the key to success.
After the world championships in Budapest she won three medals at the 2022 Commonwealth Games in Birmingham, England, including gold in the one-metre springboard. This season she’s been on the podium again at the NCAA championships and partnered with Pamela Ware, eight years her senior, to claim bronze in the three-metre synchro event at the home World Cup in Montreal in May.
WATCH | Vallée, Ware claim bronze in Montreal:
Canada’s Pam Ware and Mia Vallée dove to bronze medals in the 3 metre synchro finals at the world aquatics diving World Cup event in Montreal Friday.
‘Diving for all the right reasons’
Observers and former teammates have noticed a renewed affection for diving in this remarkably talented, still blossoming, athlete.
“When I was diving with her when she was young, she was often unhappy,” says Olympic and world championship medallist Roseline Filion, who will be in Fukuoka as a commentator for CBC/Radio-Canada.
Success in springboard diving has long been dominated by women from China. But the last time the world championships were held in Japan, in 2001, Blythe Hartley of Canada won the one-metre gold medal and became the first Canadian diver, male or female, to capture one of diving’s global titles.
Handling the pressure
She knows the bar set by Olympic and world medallists from Canada like Annie Pelletier, Sylvie Bernier, Jennifer Abel, Emile Heymans, and herself, is very high.
Hartley also understands, Vallée should not become burdened by the expectation of others.
“She has already proven she is one of the best in the world and able to handle the pressure of international competition,” Harley said via e-mail when contacted at her home in Australia. “Mia has been focused on being her own person and not comparing herself to previous divers who have been successful.
“It’s important to have a strong sense of self in order to compete under that much pressure. It’s best not to be distracted by comparing yourself to those who have gone before. Clearly Mia has found an approach that brings out the best in competition and as a spectator, it’s fun to watch.”
‘Proud of myself’
Fun is a key concept as Vallée continues to vault to international prominence. She is unafraid to show her emotions and allows herself the joys that accompany the endless demands of searching for the arc and entry of the perfect dive.
“This year I’ve learned to really make sure that I celebrate every small win even if it’s not overly significant and even if it’s not the result I wanted,” she said. “I just need to be honest with myself. I think that balance I was talking about before has a lot to do with it. It’s about growth and being proud of myself.”
As she enters the world championships in Fukuoka as one of the contenders to win, it seems that Vallée has found the springboard to her own personal success story.
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