Rochelle Stormont throwing her judo weight around

A switch in divisions has let Athens-bound judoka Rochelle Stormont take a weight off her mind. The 21-year-old Olympian has moved up to the under-52kg division since competing in the under-48kg weight at the Commonwealth Games two years ago.

"I used to have to dehydrate to get down to the weight and it just stuffed me with my reaction times, confidence and strength," Stormont said this week.

She took a gamble in moving up a division - avoiding the regime of pre-competition starvation, saunas and hot baths - and has been stunned by the results.

Stormont and coach Stephen Corkin have been impressed with how much she has improved. In the heavier division, she won the New Zealand championship, and then surprised many by winning gold at the Oceania championships too.

In fact, she has lost only one match, and that was on a trip to Europe this month when she won the silver medal at the European Judo Union "B" event in Turkey.

The 1.57m South Aucklander rates the European campaign, including attending the Dutch national training camp, as a career highlight. In the lighter division, Stormont struggled to match it with European opponents, but this month she was competitive.

At her first Olympics, Stormont is hoping to make it into the top-10 of the 22-women division, although a lot will depend on the draw.

In Manchester, she came fifth, a result which judo selectors believed showed she has promise.

"She is a young lady of talent and determination and her domination of the Oceania championships in the new weight category shows that her travel and training in Europe has certainly paid off," said Judo Federation convener of selectors Harry O'Rourke.

Born in Pukekohe and raised in Patumahoe, Stormont is one of five from a sporting family. Younger sister Vicky, 16, has become a formidable training partner for Rochelle, dad Mark tackled judo and played rugby, and mum Margaret has become chief supporter, manager and fundraiser.

Like most minority sports, judo fails to attract much funding, so Margaret Stormont has become a gun at approaching trusts and pub charities to earn her daughter money to train and travel overseas, a requirement for any player hoping to foot it on the world stage.

Stormont also saves hard, working as a personal trainer in Pukekohe at Outlook for Life.

She leaves for Greece next week, slightly apprehensive about joining the large New Zealand team as the lone representative in her sport. "But because most Kiwis are easy-going, I'm sure I'll be fine fitting in."

She will skip the opening ceremony because she fights on the second day of competition and does not want to get over-awed by the Olympic experience.

"Everyone says, 'Wow, you've done well making it to the Olympics'. To me, that's not enough. I don't just want to go to the Olympics, I want to do well."