TUSTIN TILLER DAYS PARADE!!!
October 3-5, 2008
Today, I am taking part in the Tustin Tiller Days parade taking place in Tustin, California. They will be celebrating with their community and honoring celebrities. I’m super flattered that they considered me a celebrity to be honored! THANKS, guys!!! So I’m up at 5am to get ready… I am taking my dear friend (Priscilla Lopez, 16) with me on the parade. I have had the pleasure of mentoring her for almost a year now! Its been a great experience and I look forward to more years of adventure and friendship and we continue on this wild rice of LIFE together! YAY!
So now time for the parade… its like a kick off for next year 2009 Track Season… one step closer to the next OLYMPICS in London 2012. So please feel free to take that journey with me!
SUPPORT THE DREAM of
Toyin’s OLYMPIC GOLD MEDAL in the LONDON OLYMPIC GAMES 2012
https://www.paypal.com/cgi-bin/webscr?cmd=_s-xclick&hosted_button_id=214723
A season ends… HUGE THANKS TO EVERYONE!
Toyin & Tixo
Toyin, Kobe, Selim, James
The 2008 Beijing Olympics have now come to a close and I am back in Long Beach, enjoying the comforts of home. I have been away since June in pursuit of the Olympic Dream and as I lie in bed, awake at 3am (fighting jet-lag) I have to say… God is Good. Others have also returned to their respective countries and residences, and we can all say we lived a time to remember.
I spent years training for this dream, and a long season in pursuit of the opportunity, trying to prove myself each time I stepped on the track. Stress, anticipation, and sabatogers on my shoulders, I managed to pull out a victory at the Nigerian Olympic Trials that would earn me a spot on the the team. The struggle did not end there, but soon enough I would step into the Olympic village knowing that I was about to embark upon something great. Amongst the best of the best in all the world, I was about to compete as an Olympian.
Massive Turtle & Mom
I thank God for the journey as He strengthened me with every setback, stumble, detour and fall. It made me appreciate the success that much more. I grew in my faith and felt God’s grace on my life all along the path. I was encourged so I could encourage others… blessed so that I could be a blessing. I thank God for my family, friends, and strangers acting as angels to lift me up in prayer… supporting my dream and helping to fulfill God’s purpose in my life.
To be completely honest, my performance was far from what I hoped and prayed for. My disappointment and frustration was painfully real. I was angry and struggled to fight off feelings of resentment. My public tears were dis-heartening, but my private sobs were just between me and God. There was no medal… no victory stand… no Olympic final… no personal best… no seasonal best… I was defeated. It took some days and lots of love and encouragement (thank you all!) to remember how far I had comeand what I had accomplished. No matter the outcome, I am and forever will be an Olympian.
The result was not what I wanted, but perhaps it was even better. If even one person was encouraged to push a little harder, stick it out a little longer, hold on a little tigher then I have served a great purpose in this life. And I thank God that I live to tell a tale of perseverence and faith through action. This is not the end… God’s plan is much greater than anything I could dream up.
Toyin & the rings
I prayed to be an Olympian… it was answered.
Now I pray to be an Olympic gold medalist and I have four years to reach that goal. I dont expect it to be easy or fair, but I know that He (God) who has started a great work in me will see it to perfection.
AMEN
BIG THANKS to:
My Mommy… a living, loving example. Words cant express… you’re my hero.
My Family… every Augustus and Adeoye around the world… with love, honor, and pride.
My dear friends… I love you like family. You know the intricate and incredible role you’ve played daily.
My coaches, mentors, “team Toyin”… a wealth of knowledge, experience, and success if ours. Cheers!
My fellow Huntsvillians… here’s to the beginnings of a dream fulfilled and future dreams. Thanks a million!
My supporters all around… I feel your love from wherever I am. Friends, acquaintences, and strangers alike, you are my angels.
LONDON 2012… Here we come!
more pictures here… http://www.slide.com/r/CM1ISoBsvj_0esz0d4SI8Pk3GB6M0F69?previous_view=mscd_embedded_url&view=original
Tixo and ToyinMom, Toyin, Tixo
AN EXPERIENCE OF A LIFETIME
BEIJING DAY 3-7 – August 9-15, 2008
The Beijing experience has been so great! The village is amazing with so many things to do although I have not made time to indulge. I have been trying to stay off my feet and out of the heat. When my races are over I’m going to try to see all there is to see out here!
I did get a chance to whoop up on Selim (my teammate, fellow hurdler, soon to be training partner and dear friend) in some air hockey!!! Its so hard not to be competitive. (Oh I guess I should mention how he clobbered me in fussball… ugh!) J
Its fun to see everyone
Exchanging pins…
Shopping for souvenirs…
Taking lots of pictures…
Eating lots of food…
And best of all…being in the Olympic spirit!
OPENING CEREMONIES- ALL I CAN SAY IS WOW!!!
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BEIJING DAY 2 – August 8, 2008
The Opening Ceremonies took place this evening and I knew I wanted to be a part of it. Regardless of the long waiting and standing on our feet for hours, I could not imagine missing the opportunity of being a part of the opening ceremonies of my very first Olympic Games. And I’m glad I didn’t miss it… phenomenal! By the time it was our turn to walk out onto the track, my feet felt like they were on fire from all the standing and walking we had to do, after all we were country #61, with so many still behind us. As we stepped out, flag waving to be presented to a packed stadium audience, my heart raced and my spirit soured. I celebrated as I knew best with singing and dancing… and the world witnessed my joy as the camera focused in (if only for a moment) on this girl’s first official Olympic experience. I thank God!
OLYMPIC DREAM COME TRUE
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yeah!!! That’s Selim and I in first class
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BEIJING DAY 1 – August 6/7 2008
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- yeah!!! That’s Selim and I in first class
After running my last minute errands in the morning, I met my teammate and dear friend, Selim Nurudeen at LAX to take our flight to Tokyo. We are about to be Olympians! I suggested to Selim that he change his seat to sit next to me because I had gotten an exit row and there was no one sitting next to me. Everyone who we talked to in the process was super excited that we were on our way to Beijing for the Olympics. The bug is in the air and everyone’s catching it! We were so excited when one of the check-in agents decided to bless us by upgrading us to first class seats! WOW! In our excitement we couldn’t help but think that this is the beginning of what will prove to be an amazing experience. We thank God and pray that our athletic performances and event experiences will prove to be more of the same… A blessing.
10 ½ hours flew by in relaxation and video entertainment! I gotta do this first class traveling more often! 
wink
The second flight was not as exciting since first class was full and we had to take our original middle seats toward the back of the plane. But it didn’t matter… I was on my way to the Olympics!!! Whoo hoo!
A new season begins…
Wow! I cant believe a new outdoor season has already begun!!! It feels like just the other week I was coming back from Osaka, site of the 2007 World Championships! What an awesome experience! Fall training was tough, but I made it through and now I’ve already run 4 meets! God has been so awesome!!!
I ran at the new track at Arizona State University which is the only one of its kind. The next time they will lay that kind of track down is for the Beijing Olympics. Tested and approved by yours truly! Its a great track! Cant wait to drop a fast time on it in Beijing! My race down there was my best opener ever! How exciting! Since then I have gone back into hard training and then came off a little bit so I could be a little more fresh for the African Championships which took place in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia! Stay tuned for pictures and great stories from Addis!
Until next time…
Play hard… Play safe… Play to win!!!
About Toyin
Thanks for visiting my blog!!!!
I’m a little track girl from Oyo State, Nigeria that wants to see the will of God manifested in her talents! Stick around… visit this blog often to read about my adventures around the world doing this track thing!
I run the 100m sticks… visit my webpage at www.toyinaugustus.com to learn so much more about what I do, see pictures of me, and maybe even learn a thing or two about the world of track and field!
Bisous!
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