2008-03-11

Carol Huynh is going for the gold

Cariboo Press - After more than a decade of dedication to wrestling, Hazelton’s Carol Huynh’s hard work is paying off as she prepares to represent Canada at the Beijing Olympics this summer. Making her Olympic debut in China is a double blessing for the young Canadian. “My whole family is planning on going and I think it has kind of a special meaning for my parents because it’s in China and they’re from China,” she said. “My parents are really supportive and they are really excited.” She has also been to China several times so she knows what to expect.

Huynh, who was the first of her siblings born in Hazelton, started her career in wrestling following her sister’s footsteps. “Both of my sisters wrestled and I started when I was 15,” Huynh said. “ My older sister really had a great time and when I joined a whole bunch of my friends joined so it was a lot of fun. My coach at the time was Joe Sullivan and he was great because he put so much time in and he was one of the people who really made a difference.”

After high school, she carried on both her training and her education at Simon Fraser University graduating with a BA in Psychology. Last year Huynh and her husband of two and a half years Dan Biggs moved back to his hometown of Calgary.

“I moved to Calgary because I needed a bit of a change in perspective and coaches,” she said. “Calgary has a really good program and our National team coach lives here.” Huynh said that she has adjusted well and has settled in to a solid training program. “I haven’t been training much differently,” she said. “I train six days a week and take Sundays off. I start with my trainer in the gym, wrestle all afternoon and sometimes make time for massages and chiropractor appointments. I eat everything in moderation and I am not super strict with my diet, I have a sweet tooth but my husband and I eat really healthy.”

With only 16 spots for wrestlers at the Olympics, Huynh said it’s an advantage to have competed at so many world competitions where she finished fifth and third recently. “I already know more than half of the wrestlers and I have competed against a lot of them,” she said. “At this point I truly believe I can be on the podium and I am sure once the games get closer the pressure to bring home a medal will build but I am just going put faith in to my team. This has not just been working hard for the last year, this is an entire decade of training to get where I am.”

As for Huynh’s greatest weakness heading in to the Games, confidence, she said will play a major role. “I think the hardest thing for me is myself,” she explained. “Like everyone else, you really need to have confidence in yourself and believe that you have the ability to do what you set out to do. Throughout my career I think the hardest thing has been the sports psychology. When you get to the elite level, all the competitors are strong and skilled so the biggest thing that will set people apart is the mental side of it.”

However, on the other side of the mental battle lays Huynh’s biggest advantage. “The biggest asset for me is that I have so many people that believe in me and are supporting me,” she said. “It’s kind of like a pyramid of support and I am on the top of the pyramid and I have all these great people holding me up and helping me along the way and get through the day-to-day things.”

In addition to aiming for the podium, Huynh said she is excited to have the opportunity to be a part of the whole Olympic experience.” “Being in the village, being around all these amazing athletes that are competing for the title of being the best, the opening ceremonies, all I can say is wow I can’t wait,” she said.

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