Over the past year, Para swimmer Ali Diehl has added numerous accolades to her already impressive resume, including her first career appearance at worlds and being named the recipient of three major awards.
All of that came into fruition following her performance at the 2025 Bell Canadian Swimming Trials, which marked the commencement of an outstanding year both in and out of the pool. Diehl swam to the top of the podium in the SB9 100-metre breaststroke event and secured her place at the World Para Swimming Championships in Singapore.
Not only did Diehl qualify to represent her country on the international stage, but she did so as the youngest athlete to attend with Team Canada.
“Being the youngest person, I definitely felt a little scared that I wouldn’t be in the groups as much and in conversations with everybody because everyone was so much older than me,” shared Diehl. “Once I got there and felt comfortable, it was really nice because everyone else made me feel super comfortable as well, so that helped me as I raced because I knew I had a support system watching me. After the race, I was just super pumped and happy with what I achieved.”
At just 16 years old at the time of competition, Diehl finished fourth in the women’s SB9 100-m breaststroke event and set a personal best time. In addition, she also helped Canada to a fifth-place finish in the mixed 4×100-m medley relay.
Following that performance, she attended the 2025 Ken Demchuk International Invitational and added two more medals to her already striking collection.
And her perseverance did not go unnoticed.
Diehl was announced as the 2025 Regional Tom Longboat Award recipient.
“It was definitely a proud moment for myself and I know for my family as well because we are Métis. So, it was reminiscing on my life and reality and what I make it out to be. It really showed the power that it can give you in your everyday life and it was really cool to just see how it turned out.”
That recognition continued into 2026, as Diehl was named the Saskatchewan Sport Awards Youth Female Athlete of the Year, in addition to being announced by Swimming Canada as Breakout Swimmer of the Year in the Paralympic Program in honour of her performance in Singapore.
“As soon as I had got there and heard my name be called for the [Swimming Canada] award I was really surprised and I wasn’t really expecting it. It caught me off guard and it was so amazing and still is amazing to me now. I’m just super grateful.”
Following her breakout year, Diehl continues to look ahead to her future and the competitions that will pave the way to her qualifying for the 2028 Paralympic Games.