Believe: Jennifer Abel dives into Olympic preparation

Jennifer Abel is training for her second Olympic Games (Feb. 21, 2012)

Laval's Jennifer Abel has been plunging into pools for almost her entire life, and she's ready to do the same for Canada in London later this year.

Abel has already competed at the Olympic Games, coming back from Beijing without a medal, but with plenty of experience.

"When I saw the rings, when I saw the the installation, the village, I was like, I'm really at the Olympics, I'm only 16-years-old and it's really big," said Abel.

Now she's gearing up for the 2012 Games in London.

From the moment she first saw a springboard, Abel knew that her life would revolve around diving.

"When I saw my brother jump on the one-metre springboard I was like, 'I want to do it like him, I want to do the same thing,' and it started like that," said Abel.

By the age of six she was competing, and getting better every year.

Her coach Arturo Miranda says Abel's self-confidence was key to being in Beijing four years ago, and is certain she has the potential to be on the podium this summer.

"She has extremely good power, she's probably the most powerful woman in the sport right now," said Miranda. "Very good spatial attention and she trains very, very hard so that makes her a very good competitor too."

Abel's most recent medal was a silver for synchronized diving with Emilie Heymans at the Pan Am games this past October.

Now she is spending 30 hours a week training for London.

However all work and no play can make for stressed-out competitors, so when Abel is not jumping into a pool, she has been diving into cooking classes at Appetite for Books in Westmount.

During the week her parents handle the cooking, "but on the weekends, I take time to cook some new stuff. and try to make dessert and everything," said Abel.

Those ties with her parents are important to Abel, who wears a gold chain often as a reminder of success.

"I really like it. My parents gave it to me when I was 16 maybe two days before I left for the Olympic games," said Abel.

Now, four years after her first Olympic games, Abel is hoping for a chance to shine in London.