Nicola Olyslagers – jumping with joy and a divine purpose

When Australia’s Nicola Olyslagers enters Tokyo’s National Stadium this Sunday as one of the favourite for the high jump title, she’ll be cloaked in a feeling of serenity which, she says, shields her from the obvious pressures of a World Athletics Championships

Olyslagers, the reigning World Indoor Champion, a two-time Olympic silver medallist and who dominated this year’s Diamond League meets, knows to expect stiff competition from old sparring partners, Ukraine’s Olympic champion Yaroslava Mahuchikh and fellow New South Wales Institute of Sport (NSWIS) scholarship holder, Eleanor Patterson (pictured below), the 2022 World Champion, Paris Olympics bronze medallist and an athlete who habitually wins medals at global events.

But rather than stress over the quality of her opponents – who she has described as ‘friends’ – Olyslagers, a devout Christian, says she gains strength from jumping for joy and with a divine purpose.

“I don’t feel much pressure or adrenaline,” she said of competing. “I feel a lot of peace because I know my performance doesn’t determine who I am or even what I’m bringing to competition.

“I really believe God could use my finishing in last place in more ways than I can use a first place. Because of that, I enter competitions with a standard that says, ‘this is a lot bigger than me’. If you’re going to do anything, you want to do it well . . .  especially if you’re doing something with God. I want to do it with excellence.

“So, I have this peace, but at the other end of it you have a desire to jump high. And having a lot of pressure can be hard to have that mindset. In high jump you need to be ‘on.’ and even though I’m enjoying the competition, I am, at the same time, very focussed.

“If I lose that focus I’m not going to reach those heights I’ve trained so hard for. It’s a balancing act. But the longer you’re in it, the more peace you have . . .  I’ve done a thousand competitions . . .  I know what to do, I know who I am, but [high jump or success] doesn’t determine me.

“On the other side I know there’s a platform at stake here., and I do want to use it to the best of my ability. I want to know at the end of the day I withheld nothing. I put a lot more emphasis on my preparation before a competition, and once I’m in the competition I know there’s no stone unturned. I really enjoy it.”

Olyslagers, who is renowned for jotting down her thoughts and musings in a book straight after each jump, took time out before the World Championships to share with NSWIS some of the intimate thoughts she has about her ascent from a raw rookie who finished last at her first World Athletics Championships campaign to one of the sport’s most formidable competitors.”

Dead last. 2017 World Athletics Championships, London.

“I loved 2017. It was a breakthrough year for me in many areas of my life. I competed and finished not just last, but dead last. I went into that [World Championships] ranked last but I was grateful Australian Athletics still sent me and trusted it would be a great building opportunity. When I didn’t clear the standards I didn’t leave [the field]. The first thought that came to my mind was ‘Oh. I’m out, but I have the best front row seat at the best competition in the world for women’s high jump’. I stayed and watched. I was thrilled I could stay out there and enjoy it.

“I learned plenty about myself in that moment. A lot of things can break you, but if you’re able to enjoy that moment, see it for what it is. I realised I do love the sport and the people in the sport. I wasn’t prepared for that world championships because [my selection] was a late notice. I looked at the other girls and felt as though I was a labrador and they were greyhounds. At the same time I looked at them and thought: ‘I’m not that much different to them. I just might be less experienced and not as prepared.’ But deep down I felt as though I belonged. It made me realise I had to give a lot more. I thought if I can come dead last and still feel as though I belonged, I realised no performance can take that away.”

First Blood – Gold Coast 2018 Commonwealth Games

[Olyslagers won the bronze medal after jumping 1.91m] “I became more focussed I thought, ‘I’m here, If I do a PB I can get a medal. If I get this right this is what can happen.’ Every world champs, I’ve increased the height. It went from nothing to 1.89m to 1.96m to 1.99. Going into Tokyo I’m ranked well and have a great season behind me.

“But I do know how quickly things can change. All it takes is one session that doesn’t go to plan, a niggle or whatever. I’m just trying to prepare as much as possible. I want to enjoy every moment of it . . .  not comparing my results to other people. I want to experience with that mindset of 2017 when I got onto that team. To have that freshness, like I’m a kid again, and I don’t want to ever lose that  regardless of the successes. It’s still wonderful and still exciting.”

Preparing for Peace

When I turn up to a competition, I really enjoy it, and it’s fun. There’s a peace there and there’s also such a platform because a lot of people are looking at me as either a role mode or for inspiration. I’m not scared to let them down [by being beaten], but I do want to make the most of it, so I push myself. That comes from intense training. What you see of me at a training session is probably a lot more intense than you’d see at a competition.”

Authenticity is Powerful

I can’t fake anything. My facial expression gives it away all the time. There are people who’d know if I was faking a smile. I remember being young and if you were smiling at a competition a lot of people said you weren’t trying hard enough. There is a responsibility to change that culture of supressing [a smile] to look more professional.

“Once you put a mask on in order to compete, it becomes a weight . . . a burden you have to carry into a competition. That’s heavy. It’s better to be completely authentic and at peace. You’re exposed when the whole world can see what’s going on in your mind. And what they’re saying can be joyful or frustrating or high pressure. Why try to be something you’re not? Just show the world who you are in that moment.

“Things crack under pressure if they’re not solid. Going into these competitions I’m not trying to be something I’m not. My faith is a foundation because I know no matter what pressure gets placed on top of it, it’s solid. I know that, and it excites me. Actually, I always have a bit of a hunger for those high pressure moments. They’re a little test that asks: ‘how’s the foundation going today?’ I feel alive in those high pressure moments because I feel what’s inside of me at that time.”

Coach equals stability

“I feel like my coach Matt Horsnell and I have grown so much together in sport during the 18-years we’ve worked together. He’s always had so much talent as a coach he was just waiting for an athlete to showcase that. He just kept believing in me. Matt didn’t see what I didn’t have. He didn’t compare me to the top athletes; he just wanted me to reach my potential – and he didn’t know what that was. I think I’ve surpassed both our expectations from when we first started and we’re now in the unchartered territory of seeing how high that is.

“He’s had to change as a coach in order to adapt to that next level, which was beyond what he understood. A very beautiful quality of Matt’s is he’s willing to ask for help if he doesn’t have an answer to a question. He’ll search for it. He wants to be equipped. He’s happy to hear other people say, ‘Have you tried this?’ If it was random people saying we’re doing everything wrong he might not listen, but if we have a relationship with someone and they say ‘what about this?’ he’s willing to listen, adapt and work alongside other people so I can reach the highest potential. It’s so refreshing “

Daniel Lane, NSWIS