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Archive Record
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Metadata
Object ID |
2023.22.7 |
Object Name |
Video Recording |
Title |
Diane Jones Konihowski Interview |
Scope & Content |
Diane Jones Konihowski interview, 2021. Born digital MP4, viewing time 00:10:56. Transcript: Tara Slone: She is a two-time Pan Am Games gold medalist, a Commonwealth Games gold medalist, a three-time Olympian, and now, Diane Jones Konihowski can add Honoured Member of Canada's Sports Hall of Fame to her long list of accolades. Diane joins me now from her home in Calgary. Diane, congratulations. How did it feel to get the call to this Hall? Diane Jones Konihowski: Well, I was truly honoured. I was really surprised, because I really felt that I wasn't going to make this Hall. I've been named to every other Hall, but I sat on the selection committee, Tara, for many years. So I know how difficult it was to get nominated and then, to get chosen. Yeah, so when I got the call, I was really surprised, but truly honoured. Tara Slone: So we'll touch on your remarkable career. I'd like to start from the beginning, because most of us struggle to excel in a sport, an event. Pentathlon is five. So how did you become a pentathlete and get to such a high level? Diane Jones Konihowski: Well, I just always did sport right from when I was five. I did gymnastics, I did baton twirling, I did volleyball, I played a lot of volleyball, all the school sports, and I just needed to be busy. I think I liked Phys Ed and sports better than school academically. So I was just always really, really active. So when I did get involved in track and field, now known as athletics, it was sort of natural for me to participate and train for a number of events within the sport. And there were some competitions that I would go in 10 or 11 events. So it just seemed that the pentathlon was a natural for me. Tara Slone: So fast-forward to 1979, heading into 1980, you are in peak form, you are at the top of the sport, you've gone through two Olympic Games, heading into your third, and the rug gets pulled out from under you. 1980, Canada decides to boycott that games. First of all, that wasn't a decision that you were in support of at the time. How does it feel to you, in retrospect, knowing that you were positioned to win gold that year? Diane Jones Konihowski: Well, at the time, it was very, very upsetting, because I had just come off 1978, the Commonwealth Games gold medal with the number one score in the world. And 1979 was another successful year. So I was really heading into Moscow a real podium favourite, a contender. We had moved to New Zealand, my family and my coach's family, and we isolated ourselves. And I remember watching on TV American athletes marching at the White House, trying to get President Carter to change his mind. And I remember saying to my husband, "I can't imagine how they're feeling." And then, literally a month later, I get the call from Corey Elliott in Edmonton, CFRN, and he says, "What do you think about Canada's decision?" And we were way out of the loop. We were in New Zealand, and you got two news channels on TV. And we had no idea what was going on in Canada. So I spoke out against it. And to this day, I believe that it was a really wrong decision. It didn't prove anything, but it was a very interesting time. And I was obviously very, very disappointed, because those were my last Olympics. That's when I wanted to sort of get on with my life and sort of start, I guess, looking at reality and getting a mortgage, getting a house, and having children, and all that kind of stuff. You kind of put that on hold when you're an athlete pursuing the Olympics. Tara Slone: Two weeks after you were supposed to compete though, you did compete against all of those you would've competed against at the Olympic Games, and you beat everybody. Did that provide any solace to you? Or it still stung just the same? Diane Jones Konihowski: Well, a little bit. Yeah, I did beat them, and I also won the Alternate Olympics, which is what the Americans called their games. They were funny down there, but it looked like the Olympics when you won and crossed [inaudible 00:03:58]. The media just kind of swarmed, but it's the American way, right? But yeah, Tara, it's not really about the hardware at the end of the day. You ask many athletes where their medals are, and they're in drawers somewhere, in a sock. Very rarely are they on display. So it's more really about the journey. So I knew that my performance was really good, and I knew that I probably could have gone on the podium, and it didn't happen. And that's fine. I have to be very happy with the training that I did and the results that I did achieve in '78, '79, and '80. Tara Slone: Well, that, no doubt, gave you incredible perspective when you took your life off of the track, off of the field. But one strange distinction you have is having missed 1980, you share a lot with a bunch of these Olympians this year who are supposed to go to Tokyo and have now had their dreams postponed. Have any of them come to you and asked for advice and...? Diane Jones Konihowski: No, I'm way too old. I'm kind of the past, but I do feel for them. Because so many of those athletes and coaches, this is really their swan song. This is it. They've done it, they've been there, done that. They've got some goals. They want to achieve them, and then, they want to kind of move on in life. So this is really tough for those athletes. It's sort of at the end of their career. Do they hang in another year? And then, we're hearing from the CEO of the Organizing Committee that they may not even happen. That's not good news either. So we'll just have to see how it plays out. But globally, it's a very tough decision, but everyone's in the same boat. And no athlete wants to go to a Games anyways, Tara, where you can't train, you can't be prepared. And nobody can prepare right now. So it's very frustrating time for everybody. Tara Slone: You talked about your transition, and it seemed very seamless. You remained in the world of sport until 2010. What did you take? What lessons did you take with you? And how did you apply them to life also working with athletes? Diane Jones Konihowski: Well, I think just having been there and I just know what the journey's like, and I also coached. And you just have all that experience of traveling the world and learning more about yourself, in terms of your potential and how far you can push yourself. And you meet with a lot of coaches from around the world, and you just gain a lot of knowledge. And so, for me, it was easy to work with athletes after sport. Also to sort of sit on a couple of national committees. It was natural for me to sit on the Coaching Association of Canada Committee at a time when the National Certification Program was asking of our coaches to get themselves certified, to go back to the classroom, to learn more about coaching, gain that knowledge. And we were starting to look at wanting to do better on the international stage. And so, we wanted our coaches to be right up there with us. And then, when I was on the Canadian Olympic Committee for many, many years, in the nineties, we were looking at making those tough decisions about not being able to fund every sport. We just didn't want to go to the Olympics anymore and participate. We actually wanted to get to the podium and win. So we had to make some really tough decisions about selecting those sports and athletes that we felt could really perform well. And I was also the first employee of our Canada's first National Sports Center, and that was an exciting time. So it's really fun to be a part of these decisions, because you're creating something new. And it's all about excellence. It's all about supporting our athletes and getting them to the podium. And what does that look like? What do we have to do? So really enjoyed that part of the journey, when I was on my national boards. Tara Slone: Do you see yourself as a role model, particularly for women? Diane Jones Konihowski: Yeah, I'm told I was. Tara Slone: You are. Diane Jones Konihowski: I still get women coming up to me today that, yeah, because in the sixties, when I started, my career spanned three decades, the mid sixties, right through to 1984, when I chose to retire and not go to the LA Olympics. And I have women that come up to me, and there weren't that many in those days, women role models. And I was in the paper a lot. The media really liked me, so I was in the newspaper a lot and in the media a lot. And yeah, I guess I was a role model for so many women. And looking back, at the time that you're going through that, Tara, you don't think about it. And it's really sort of near the end when people come up to you and say, "Oh gosh, I admired you so much. You were the reason why I pursued my sport." And that always makes you feel good. Tara Slone: Well, I'm going to correct one thing, if I may, because you're talking about the past tense, but you are an incredible role model. So please own that. Because you are what we call a kick ass woman. So please, please. And I'm delighted that we get to highlight you again with this induction. I'm going to leave you with one final question, because I know the work you're doing currently is very important at the Distress Center in Calgary. So what is that? And how has the need been amplified by the pandemic? Diane Jones Konihowski: Well, Distress Center Calgary is Calgary's only 24 hour crisis support, and so, we're very busy right now, absolutely. We take over after-hours when all social agencies and really the preventative healthcare sector kind of closes its doors, and we do very important work. We literally saves lives every day for sure, every day. And my role is fund development and communication. So it's the awareness piece, getting the word out that we exist. We're there for anybody. They can call us at day or night. They can chat, if they don't feel comfortable talking on the phone, and youth can actually text. And at the other end of that text is another youth. We're the only texting support program in Canada, peer support program. And so, it's really valuable work. The fund development is tough right now. Everyone's in really financial need, so it's really, really tough out there. But it's okay. We have a great case for support, and we do save lives every day. And I just love working in the social sector. It's very different for me at my age. It's a very compassionate workplace, so I love it. It's going to be my last job and my last career. Tara Slone: Well, Diane, you have had incredible careers, plural. Thank you for everything you've done. Thank you for your time, and congratulations on your newest induction. Diane Jones Konihowski: Thank you, Tara. |
People |
Jones Konihowski, Diane |
Search Terms |
Diane Jones Konihowski Pentathlon 1975 Pan American Games 1978 Pan American Games Order of Canada Bobbie Rosenfeld Trophy Velma Springstead Award 1972 Olympic Games Munich Chef de Mission Advocacy Women in Sport |