Jade Sweeney’s diving is reaching great new heights

SHE is the princess of the platform and now diver Jade Sweeney is ready to somersault into the World Junior Championships.

THE world is young diver Jade Sweeney’s oyster — and she will soon face some of its toughest competitors.

Jade, who is bounding up the ranks of the NSW Institute of Sport’s diving program, has just qualified for the 2016 FINA World Junior Championships — a goal she set herself last year.

“It feels really good to have achieved that, it was exciting being named in the (junior Australian) team,” she said.

Jade was selected based on her platform performance at the Australian Elite Junior Championships, held in July in Adelaide, where she won a silver medal for platform and came fourth overall for springboard 1m and 3m.

Diving champ Jade Sweeney in action at the Sydney International Aquatic Centre. Picture: Craig Wilson

“I love doing 10m, it is the highest so it is fun,” Jade said.

“I will be working on ... getting harder dives with more degree of difficulty to have a better chance of going well at worlds.”

The Junior Sports Star nominee, who trains almost every day, will compete in Russia at the end of the year.

Her new coach Joel Rodriguez, a two-time Olympian and NSWIS assistant and junior development coach, said Jade was a promising young diver.

“She has a bright future in the sport because she is very committed and she has the determination, which is very important,” Mr Rodriguez told the Penrith Press.

Platform is Jade’s favourite part of diving, which got her into the World Juniors. Picture: Craig Wilson

“And with the way she’s training she is going to get good results,” he said.

Jade, a member of Diving Australia’s junior squad and Year 9 Penrith student at Anglican College has tasted success through school sport, and will represent the state in Victoria in August.

She has been sponsored by a swimwear brand, Amanzi, for more than a year.

● Categories are Junior Sports Star, Young Sporting Spirit, Team Spirit and Service to Sport

● Rebel is the major sponsor, with Fox Sports Pulse and Simonds Homes

● Nominate now at juniorsportsstar.com.au

Jade Sweeney. Pic: Craig Wilson

Jade Sweeney. Pic: Craig Wilson