The Morning New Balance 2020 Indoor National Championship was Canceled because of the Coronavirus3/12/2020 Alicia Thomas: Class of 2020 Event:55meter dash PR: 7.07 The New Balance High School Indoor National Championship has been canceled.
For many first time National qualifiers, it’s their senior year. Their time, tears and sweat have gone into this; their last high school indoor track meet. Today Alicia Thomas stretched from underneath her warm blanket and per routine checked her phone. I can imagine she jolted up, slapped with the news. The 2020 High School National Championship has been canceled. As a coach, as a parent and as a friend, nothing can prepare you for the heartbreak of a loved one. I love my athletes and we are shattered. Everything that they had prepared for was gone within a text. With no words of how to feel they silently suffered behind their bedroom doors. “Mom, can I stay home, please ?” I remember the smiles and tears the athletes had once they qualified for New Balance Indoor Nationals for the first time in their running career. A competition for the best high school athletes in the nation. The race of elites and a chance for them to cheer, “ I did it.” For my seniors, there are no second chances. Next year, they will be experiencing a new world of track and field. They’ll be in a new environment with new teammates and a new vision for track & field. They are speechless. Loudly rethinking every drill; hill; sprint,laugh,tear, scrape and now heartbreak that had led them to this point. The one last time they'd run with their team who became family. In life, our character is built through adversity. My athletes has shown strength during this unforeseen adversity, but right now they need compassion. Sharing our encouraging words and showing our support is just the beginning of the healing. My athletes were ready but the world wasn’t.
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Model: Taylor McCormick Event: Triple Jump Virginia Commonwealth University 2018 Track and Field Seniors favorite Quotes in a letter. Blessings come often but this one is extraordinary. There are many people who start but an athlete finishes. There are people who are motivated but an athlete is disciplined. There are people who go on social media to vent but an athlete knows that, “No one can make you feel inferior without your consent.” There are people who just dream but an athlete gets up and chase them. “You have to fall in love with the process of becoming great” no matter how heavy the weight. “The price of greatness is responsibilities” and the “pressure will either mold you or fold you . The choice is yours" to make. When you make that choice think about why you started in the first place. Break out of your comfort zone because “the bird that dares to fall, learns to fly” Everyday is not our best day but because we are disciplined our “work is love made visible.” “You can not have a million dollar dream with a minimum wage work ethic” and “when you do things right, people won’t be sure you’ve done anything at all.” Athletes aren’t made in a day. Being an athlete is a process. Abraham Lincoln said, “Give me six hours to chop down a tree and I will spend the first four sharpening the axe.” To be an Athlete is understanding that "there is beauty in the struggle and ugliness in the success." To be an Athlete is understanding that “it’s a dog eat dog world and I’m wearing bacon pants." Everyone sees how good you look but it is your duty to remain focus. Being an athlete is understanding that “existing is easy. Living demands courage daily” and "Just because you're breathing don't mean you're living." To be an Athlete is a privilege. You are your biggest competition. “Growth is painful, Change is painful, but there is nothing as painful as staying stuck somewhere you don’t belong” so today I in encourage you to “Be an Athlete!” Favorite quotes: Roger Botock- "It's a dog eat dog world and I'm wearing bacon pants" Erika Coleman- "No one can make you feel inferior without your consent" Olivia Coopwood- “The price of greatness is Responsibilities” “Growth is painful, Change is painful, but there is nothing as painful as staying stuck somewhere you don’t belong” Marcus Finnie- "Be an Athlete" Bigal Harrison- "You have to fall in love with the process of becoming great" Andrae McGowan- "There is beauty in struggle, Ugliness in the success" Kareem Payne- "The bird that dares to fall, learns to fly" Head Coach Jon Riley- "You can not have a million dollar dream with a minimum wage work ethic" Coach Sage- "When you do things right, people won't be sure you've done anything at all" Shawn Scornaienchi- ""Give me six hours to chop down a tree and I will spend the first four sharpening the axe"- Abraham Lincoln" Kahlil Shepard- "Work is love made visible" De'Nisha Smith- "Pressure will either mold you or fold you. The choice is yours" Coach Tussing- "Existing is easy. Living demands courages daily" Nick Williams- "Just because you're breathing don't mean you're living" The voice of the Athlete that didn’t make it pro:
The goal coming out of high school was to go Pro, to prove everybody that doubted me wrong. Going pro was the only place where I’d seen my future. I didn’t see myself being a school teacher or a doctor or a lawyer; I saw myself winning the championship, bringing home medals after medals and getting praise for it. I worked hard. Part of me wants to be proud for trying, even though part of me is dying because I felt like a failure for not accomplishing my goal. I wish I could go back to freshman year and put on my gear and just try again. I know that they say let it go, but it’s so hard to recover from a broken heart. We’re only getting older, and it’s not like I can go back and restart because I know that it takes years to build a champion, and years of hard work to maintain one. If I had one more chance I would do it again… The Letter: I understand the pain, the hurt, and the broken promises. There’s more to life than reflecting back on things that we can not change. I understand that you wish you would have worked a little harder. Tell the younger generation your story so they can go harder. Just because it didn’t happen doesn't mean that you're not good enough, so hold your head up. Be thankful for the experience and the opportunity you had to create memories. Be thankful that you were able to wear a jersey and travel to new places with teammates you’ll never forget. Be glad that you discovered your talents. Be thankful for the support and the ones that asked, “Are you okay?” when they saw tears in your eyes after game day. You were always told to trust the process but feared that the process wouldn’t go your way. After receiving your results and praying to God before every meet and every game day, you begin to lose hope and that’s okay. Life is not a straightaway. Some days you feel like a champion, other days you wish to quit but your heart won’t let you. I understand that it took your breath away when you had one last chance and it didn’t go your way. It’s okay. You’re not alone and you were good enough. You started and you finished and that’s what makes you a champion. You didn’t start and quit but you finished…. And that says a lot about you. That’s enough to make your future kids smile when you tell them your story, enough to show how dedicated you were, even when practices were Hell, you didn’t quit. Even when you had to go straight to work after practice, you didn’t quit. Even when you couldn’t feel your legs and could barely make it out of bed, you didn’t quit. Even when you had to pull 3 all-nighters back to back to get your homework done, you STILL didn’t quit. You are a champion and nothing less, don’t forget. (Many of You have asked about my pregnancy journey. It took me forever to put it into words but I did. Here's a poem about it)
I remember when I first found out that I was pregnant with Nya I was happy because I knew it was coming, I had a dream of her before i knew she was going to be placed in my womb and change me into a person that i never met before. I didn’t know God’s timing I just knew it was a dream and two years before I took the pregnancy test there was no way I could picture that being me. “I’ll just get abortion.” was something I always said if I had a child in me because I knew I wasn’t ready and I was scared that not only the world but I would judge me. I didn’t expect to have sex around the time that I did and I forgot all about the dream when I did. Three to four weeks after sex I took the test and I was shocked but I was excited. I knew that my baby would have a good father and a wonderful family and I was so happy for this life changing experience but when I told my babies father he wasn’t down to retain it. I remember my happiness slowly turned into pain and my pain slowly turned into depression when he told me if I didn’t get abortion then he wasn’t going to be there or as a father make any progression. I remember it like yesterday, All the made up stories he told me just to make this baby of ours go away. I felt weak, I was scared because I knew as a child of God this would be…. Embarrassing. I knew as a child of God that I have sinned. I sinned when I had sex so I couldn’t sin twice to kill a blessing that God placed in my womb, a blessing that most people call a “mistake.” I remember when i was outside and it was August I called my brother on the phone because I didn’t know what to do. We both knew that raising a child takes two and I’m just crying because i’m still young too and The father of my child wanted abortion so bad that I couldn’t understand until later I found out that my baby would be his number two. I remember him blocking me on every social media and telling me not to tell anyone. I remember throwing up as I was walking home from class and it was pouring down rain and he drove pass and I was lucky that I didn’t get splashed because there was a huge rain puddle right next to the sidewalk that I was walking on. I remember my teammate showing up at his job to try to talk him into being a man and I remember when I first told him that it was a girl. I remember walking into my coaches office in tears to tell him the news even though I was covered in fear of losing my scholarship because I knew i wouldn’t be able to compete for the year I remember calling my sister drowned in pain telling her that I couldn’t live this life anymore and I wanted it to end I remember turning off my phone that day because I was ready to do whatever it takes to take the pain away and bring the journey to an end I remember my teammates being supportive and loving me so I wouldn’t slip away because deep down inside I felt so alone and it was starting to show like a milestone, how much longer could I survive on my own I remember my oldest sister driving 7 hours to love me because 377 miles away wasn’t kicking it We dyed my bundles and made me pretty again and I was feeling it I remember being in my bedroom and my roommates dog ate my subway and then tried to cuddle with me I remember crying behind closed doors and never being able to sleep at night, praying to God that He will rescue me from this nightmare this disease of depression that was living inside of me, i cried so hard that some nights I couldn’t breathe peacefully I remember wearing sweatshirts to hide my belly….. I remember seeing Nya’s face for the first time and she took my breath away and I felt loved for the first time in a long time, she placed my heart on cloud nine and I smiled so hard because I just knew this was God’s time I remember holding her in my arms and hearing her laugh for the first time, I knew she was a gift. I knew she was my hope for my future and my motivation for everything I wanted to do in life that it was only right to lead by example. To graduate and starve for greatness in everything I do so she knows that she can do anything. I knew she was a Gift that brings in the warmth of the sun even when it’s snowing outside. Purpose, shining, Goal -Nya purpose is to shine through every goal and When I think back on everything, I can barely remember the pain anymore… I remember the blessing. ("How I got back in Shape for Track after having Nya" MSB Video coming Next) And on this day we become legendary.
We have already experienced the easiest parts of life We experienced sleepless nights, broken hearts, and unlimited sacrifices We experienced what it’s like to wake up with surprises and what it’s like to go to sleep restless We experienced what pain is through friendships, relationships, bad grades, and hangovers We waited for this day just to say I’m finished, it’s over We fought through tears and 8 am classes Even though we were late some days we did whatever we could to make an A… or C We made friends with people from different places We became friends with people who are disabled, Foreign, and different races It felt like forever but it went by so fast It was just 2013 when we finished our last high school class When we finished high school we thought that life would be more precious; We Thought that trails of Joy would pour out like gold. Yet Everybody has a college story and many of them have not been told MY STORY “I AM A SINGLE MOTHER, STUDENT ATHLETE and I AM PARTIALLY DEAF” My first two years of college I survived my classes without hearing aids. I thought that It would be okay with just lip reading what my professors would say, and it was okay extremely hard but OK. I survived high school without my hearing aids so I thought that MAYBE I could do the same thing with college. Maybe I can just study harder from the notes on the whiteboard or in the PowerPoint and I won’t have to worry about hearing what goes on in class. I thought that MAYBE I would be okay. Everyday was a challenge when I walked into one of my classrooms, when I spoke with friends, and when I went to track practice. My coaches couldn’t blow the whistle for me during practice. They had to raise their hands when it was time for me start. I was blessed to have coaches who were patient with me. Many people would ask me, “Can you hear the gun?” Yes, I can hear the gun, the gun is loud. I would have to remind them that I am not fully deaf, I am part deaf. Before I got my hearing aids I would pay attention to people's reactions in conversations to measure out how I should react if I’m not fully hearing them. Should I react sad, happy, or excited. People would ask “Why didn’t you just sign?” I never knew sign language. I only knew parts of it...the simple words such as mom, dad, eat, sad. I took sign language in high school and was only taught the basics. “Why didn’t you take it in college?” The college I attend does not have sign language as a language. “What is it like being part deaf?” Well have you ever wore ear plugs? Imagine wearing ear plugs and never taking them out. It’s challenging. When I got pregnant my junior year I decided to get hearing aids again. I wanted to be able to hear my baby when she arrived. I wanted to hear every little sound, every cry, and every yawn. The last time I wore hearing aids were in middle school. I stopped wearing them because they were hurting my ear. My Junior year in college I was able to receive a discount on my hearing aids for being a student. Look at God. Hearing aids are $2000 a piece, I needed two. My dad had already passed away my freshman year of college so me and my mom worked together to pay off the hearing aid. When I got my hearing aids I heard sounds that I have never heard before and I was shocked about the sounds that I heard. When I was driving back to college from Virginia (7 hour drive) in the fall semester of 2015 I heard the sounds of the road for the very first time. It actually scared me because I thought something was wrong with my car. I called my sister and she said, “You’re just hearing better.” I was so grateful for my hearing aids. When Nya arrived April 18, 2016 I was able to hear everything, I would sleep in my hearing aids because I didn’t want to miss a single cry. The only time I took my hearing aid out was in the shower. My hearing aid Junior and Senior year of college made a big difference. Everybody has faced something challenging through college but not everyone's story is heard and that is why I say, On This Day We Become Legendary. Introduction of what it’s like to be a mom, student, and an athlete: Some nights I don’t get the sleep that I wish for. Instead, I get nights of walking down the stairs to make a bottle for a baby that won’t sleep, nights of trying to calm down a baby that’s teething, or nights trying to figure out what kind of medicine to give her because she is running a fever. There have been nights when she’s been in the hospital until 4a.m. because of her fever and I would still be on time for my 10 a.m. class that morning. There are no “if’s” or “buts” when it comes to being a single mom that’s a student-athlete. What needs to be done has to be done. If my grades weren’t right then I wouldn’t be able to compete and that would result into losing my scholarship, and that isn’t the road I want to go down. In August, I moved back to South Carolina. Around that time my daughter was only 4 months old. I searched everywhere looking for her a daycare. All in one day, I went to social services and four different daycares trying to get everything together before classes started. Three daycares told me that there was no more room and that they only took ten babies. I sat in the car that day after driving around from daycare to daycare praying to God to help me. I called 4 other daycares that day and the last daycare I called had one last spot available. I got it. I got that last spot. I was overwhelmed with joy. Two weeks before school started, I found her a daycare, a doctor, I got WIC, and I received a letter for food stamps. My daughter was with me for every move I made during those two weeks. She was right by my side, right there sitting on my lap through all the meetings and me holding her in my arms through all the long lines. When classes started for the fall semester, I was taking 6 classes which added up to 18 credits. I did this in order for me to graduate on time, May 5th, 2017. My goal was a 4.0 gpa for my last fall semester, but I ended with a 3.1 barely making it above a 3.0. I took four online classes and two in-person classes. Online classes require the most work because the professor wants to make sure you’re in attendance. Some days I would have so much online homework that I would wake up early to drop my daughter off at daycare just so I could get to study hall early enough to complete all my assignments. For my in-person classes, we had many group projects and I would ask if we could meet during the day before I picked up my daughter from daycare instead of at night. Practice was scheduled at 3 pm on Monday, Wednesday, Friday and 1:40 pm on Tuesdays and Thursdays. Fall training is one of the hardest times because you’re just getting use to being awake from 8am to 11pm without a nap and trying to train at your highest potential with repeat 800’s (2 laps around the track) at a fast pace or lifting heavy in the weight room after you been sitting in class for a long period of time. There was no such thing as naps for me anymore. As soon as I was finished with practice, between 4:30pm and 5pm it was time for me to go and pick up my daughter. After I would pick her up, we would go home and I would give her a bottle of milk and she would fall right to sleep. When she fell asleep, that’s when I would go and take my after practice shower, cook dinner, do laundry, clean, and then relax until it was time for her to wake up. Sometimes I would take her to the volleyball games and basketball games on campus or try to put her in activities such as the crawling contest that was held in January. She placed second and she cried the whole time. On nights when we had a team meeting I would ask my roommate or her God Mother if they could pick her up from daycare. They are a big help! For the spring semester, things took a turn. We started traveling for track meets, Nya wakes up a lot throughout the night, she needs every bit of attention there is, and out of six class only two were online. How to be a mom, a student, and an Athlete By Olivia Coopwood March 20, 2017 Growing up, we all face the challenges of being an adult. We experience paying our bills for the first time, finding a career that we love, and accepting that not everything is going to go our way. At 21, I gave birth to a baby girl, Nya who is now 11 months. Nya is walking all over the place and will eat anything she can get her hands on. “Keep an eye on your kids!” is something that all mothers hear from non mothers that will never fully understand. Where’s the baby when you’re in class or at Practice? I started my senior year at Coastal Carolina in August, Nya had just turned 4 months. It was not easy finding a daycare with cameras, and that didn’t seem like they were stressed out from the children in daycare. After trying about 5 to 7 different daycares, I finally found a good one and they had one spot left. Every morning, I take that trip down myrtle beach roads, about 15 minutes from my college and I drop her off around 9a.m. After I finish up with classes and practice, I then pick her up around 5p.m. “I think it’s unique seeing someone handle the responsibility of being a mom, student and an athlete. It makes you wonder how much sleep they’re getting at night. It’s a talent to do those things.” said Chris Ariail, head of the student athletic study hall. Without the help from the state then none of this would be possible. South Carolina social services offers a program called ABC which helps with your daycare budget. Your situation will give them an idea of how much they will pay off from your daycare expense. www.scchildcare.org/departments/sc-voucher.aspx Where’s the baby when you travel to track meets on the weekends? If you have a special talent now is the time to use it. I have four baby sitters and before the season started, we made a schedule of who will have Nya for each track meet. I pay them by doing their hair for free. They’ll tell me what hair style they want and I’ll do it without a problem. Yes, any hair style. When the babysitter has to pick Nya up from daycare, I will just put their name on the list before I leave for the track meet. “It’s hard to find a babysitter that can be trusted and then on top of that they want a large amount of money. Especially if the baby is staying over night. Sometimes you have to use what you know you can do best that includes doing hair, nails, making clothes, cooking or whatever you think you can do.” said Tiffany Harris, a member of Coastal Carolina’s Track and Field team. How do you study? In the fall, I took 6 classes adding up to 18 credits. 18 credits for the fall and 18 for the spring semester was all I needed to graduate on time. In the fall, I took four online classes and two in-person classes. After I was done with my in-person classes for the day then I would go to study hall and work on my online classes until practice. I made sure that all my class were between 10a.m. and 2p.m. For this spring semester, I am currently taking four in-person classes and two online classes. On Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays I am in study hall for at least 3-4 hours doing assignments, taking tests, writing papers, and studying while my daughter is in daycare. When do you spend time with her? After I pick her up from daycare, we go home and she will take a nap (sometimes, if not she goes to bed early). When she’s taking a nap in her crib I shower, eat a small meal, and if she’s still asleep I will lay down as well. She has to wake up before 7:30p.m. if she starts her nap after 5p.m. just so she will sleep at night. When she wakes up from her nap we would go downstairs and she will watch me cook diner while she’s playing with her toys in her highchair. After eating dinner it’s bath time! While she’s in the tub I’ll do her hair for the week(If it’s Monday). We then spend the rest of the day in her playroom that I made for her or we’ll just read a couple of books and practice our colors and words. South Carolina social services will give food stamps to those who need help with buying food. Using the food stamps or WIC (Women, Infants, and Children) will help save money on formula if you’re not breastfeeding. If you are breastfeeding WIC will help provide you with healthy foods.https://dss.sc.gov/ How do you pay for everything? Growing up paying for things was so easy because all you had to do was go to your parents. It’s different when you’re a single mother or a single father because the baby only runs to you. No, I am not working. When I have time I will do hair for those who want their hair done to get a little more money. Most of my money comes from financial aid. Every semester they give us money to help us survive college. I use it for my bills or whatever I need for my daughter. I also use her child support to help me put gas in the car, buy her hair products, clothes, or whatever she may need.(https://www.state.sc.us/dss/csed/contact.htm) For medical expense we both have medicaid. Medicaid will provide you and your baby with a doctor. You can receive medicaid by filling out the application online at https://www.scdhhs.gov/site-page/medicaid . What do you and your daughter do for fun? Movie night is my favorite! We sit on my bed and watch a Disney movie before bed. Other times we will go to sweet frog, or school basketball games. I entered her in a crawling contest one time at our school basketball game and she cried the whole time, but she finished second. I read to her and sometimes I take her outside on a walk or we have a picnic. However, we only have picnics on the weekend. Uriah Snoberger, an assistant athletic trainer at Coastal Carolina stated, “Being a student, mom, and an athlete is hard work but those who can successfully manage all three are the ones that have the best time management skills.” Having a child in college is challenging, but I would not change it for anything in the world. When I was pregnant my biggest fear was getting stretch marks.
I packed my bathroom with coconut oil, olive oil, coconut butter for stretch marks, stretch mark cream and anything I could possibly think of that would stop me from getting stretch marks as I grew bigger. I made sure I moisturized three times a day because I was so worried about getting a single marked on me. At seven months it happened. I got very first pregnancy stretch mark and I was in disbelief. I then searched Google, Amazon, It Works! and all these places to find me ANOTHER brand of stretch mark cream. There I was throwing all this money away because my fear of getting more stretch marks. My stomach grew so fast in the last two months that when I gave birth I didn't bounce right back as I wished. My stomach was wrinkly, loose, dark and full of stretch marks. I lost my confidence. I felt like I needed surgery to make my skin tight again or at least to look a little better. I wasn't happy with my body at all. I tried to workout before I was fully recovered and that was NOT a smart thing to do because I was still healing and my body was telling me to let itself heal. When I got back to working out after my body completely healed, I was scared to take my shirt off and run in just a sports bra. I run track at school and I didn’t want my teammates to see what happened to my stomach. I was afraid of the judgement that would have came. I slowly started to gain my confidence back after I went to church one Sunday and I ran into a married woman, who was a lot older than I was with no kids, who wanted to hold Nya. Of course I let her hold my baby and after that I went home and complained about my body AGAIN. For what seemed like the 100th time, my sister comforted me on the blessing of having stretch mark and then added, “The lady that held your baby today, I bet you she would love to have those stretch marks on her body.” I thought about that for hours! There are women who can't even have kids or have had miscarriages and they would LOVE to have my body or just to hold their baby in their arms. I'm so thankful for my daughter and I'm thankful for the new body she gave me. My new body is my baby's birthmark designed for me. Everytime I look in the mirror it’s a reminder of who and why I work so hard for success. Our babies think our bodies are perfect..so we should too! I got pregnant with Nya when I was a Junior in college during the fall semester. It was surprising news to find out that I had a whole world growing on the inside of me. However, because I went through most of my pregnancy alone I didn't post any pictures and nobody knew about my pregnancy story except for my family and my coaches. My athletic academic adviser gave me four options for the spring semester and we came to the conclusion that it was best for me to take online classes from home so I could be around my family. The first 6 months of being pregnant I was at coastal Carolina, I was not even showing around that time. I tried my best to hide my morning sickness the first few weeks of class in August but I always felt so sick that there were some days that I didn't even make it to class and had to make up for my missed assignments. The first time my morning sickness kicked in I was in the library getting my books for the semester, I got really hot and my mouth got watery then before I knew it I was running to the bathroom to throw up the strawberry applesauce that I ate that morning. I was very depressed during my first 6 months of being pregnant because I was in South Carolina while my family was in Virginia. I remember going back home before school started and before I took the pregnancy test I had told my sisters that I had a feeling I was pregnant. Of course I was nervous, I was patiently waiting for my period that never came. I told my mom about my pregnancy when I was about 8 weeks. I couldn't get back to Virginia around that time so I had to call her, of course I made sure she was sitting down at home before I broke the news to her. She was shocked. Two weeks later after breaking the news to her my sister Emily calls me and tells me that mom is already shopping for her first grandchild. We didn't even know the gender yet! When I told my coaches I broke down crying because I knew deep down inside that this isn't what a coach wanted to hear. I have to say, I am grateful for my coaches at Coastal Carolina University. They showed me nothing but love. I know that you're all like "well what the baby's dad say?" I'll just say this, he wasn't happy. I told my teammates in November and they surprised me with a baby shower in December before I left. Between 7 and 8 months me and my sister took trips to the gym and of course everyone was staring me down because I was the pregnant woman running on the treadmill at speed of 6.5. I tried my best to stay in shape but that was literally impossible for me because all I did was eat. Food was my best friend. When I was nine months I had my baby shower so I decided to straighten my natural and of course people thought it was weave and along with the weave comments came heat damage. Don't worry, my hair is getting back to normal, I'm working on it! Nya went ten days past her due date. Yes, I walked, I ate pineapples, I received a foot massage, and I even YouTube, pinterest, and googled how to make my baby come out. Nya made her arrival April 18, 2016, 7 pounds 7 ounces, 19 inches long and that was the day my life changed forever. |