BBC Pidgin of Tuesday, 11 October 2022

Source: BBC

'Dis year suppose be my quitting year' - Tobi Amusan

Tobi Amusan Tobi Amusan

Oluwatobiloba wey pipo know as Tobi Amusan na di One Hundred metres World Record holder for Hurdles. She be di first Nigerian to win gold for di World Athletics championships history. Dis her achievement for Eugene, Oregon, USA for August 2022 don make Nigeria and Ogun State Goment honour her in different ways. Nigeria Goment give her National Honour ‘Order of di Niger’ while Ogun State Goment make her dia Sports Ambassador and give her oda tins. Tobi wey dey 25 years na di current record holder for di World, Commonwealth and Africa for 100 metres Hurdles, tell BBC Pidgin say she nearly quit. 'I nearly quit' No be today tobi Amusan start to do sports, she don compete for both local and international competitions. Di Ijebu-Ode born sprinter dey do both sprints abd Hurdles events for many years. She tell BBC Pidgin say na dis year she set to quit di sport if evritin no go well for her as she plan am. "E no get as you waka for journey reach wey you no go fit turn back, e reach one point for my career last year wey I nearly quit and na dis year suppose be di quitting year for me if tins no work well, but we thank Baba God evritin go well. she tok about di glorious moment wen she break di world record, come set new one. "Di moment I break di record bodi sweet me, I happy well well, na moment wey I don dream off, to come see am happun bodi sweet me, in as much as I wan give baba God all di glory, I still wan jollificate say na me do am". Tobi tok as she dey laugh. How di Road to Success be? Di World, commonwealth and African Hurdles record holder tell BBC Pidgin say di road to her success no easy at all. She say na God help and hardwork, plus her coach help, her parents, and all her support system. "Evribodi just dey dey tell me say God go do am, make I just dey do my tin dey go. Di road to success no be easy one, we dey here today na Baba God run am.  I dey run straight sprint and Hurdles, but na di one wey get obstacle, di Hurdles na im easy for me pass. She tok as she take prepare for di semi-finals and finals wey make her di world record holder. "For di morning of di First Round, na championship and evribodi wan win, my coach just tell me say make I calm down, make I no fear, say if I follow wetin we dey do for practice,  evritin go work out well. Di following day wey be di semi-final and di final day, na im strong pass o! sake of say na semi-final wey hard pass, I try just to make sure say I dey top two, becos na only top two dey enta final, I no even know say na world record I wan go break so. For di finals, I just tell myself to relax, breathe, control my breathing small small make I fit execute get medal, I know say I wan win, I just wan win" she tok. Challenges and fight for di top Tobi Amusn tori neva finish o! she say she don face plenti challenges for her career, one of dem na discrimination, especially wen dem dey separate di events wey female athletes fit do from men own. “As female athlete sometimes dem go tell you say you no fit do dis particular event say na men dey do am, dem go tell you say, you too short for a particular event. Some sef na personal tins to us, dat time of di month go come wen you wan compete, na dat one bad pass for us, some of us no dey on birth control, na dat time we go rugged am out, e no easy as female athlete, obstacles full am". Despite di challenges her eyes still dey on di goal and she hope to kontinu wit wetin dey ginger her. "My goal evri year no change, as I break World record dis year na di same mindset I cari dis year na im I still cari enta next year, notin change about Tobi aside say na me get World Record now and I be OON (Order of the Niger). She clear di air about tori wey bin dey fly upandan about her shoes wey she use run, weda na di shoe help her win or not. “I no understand pipo o! I wear dat same shoe wen dem beat me last time, so why dem no tok dat time, why e be say na wen I use am run fast? Ehn na make dem still dey tok, di shoe na Superman shoe?  na shoe wey dem do give evribodi make we take run and na wetin I wear so problem no dey. She tok National Honour Tobi dey laugh wen she dey tok about di National honour wey Nigeria goment give her. She say di “Di award choke o! e no easy, but I just thank dem say dem recognise say we do di work and dem feel di need to acknowledge us. If dem say dem no go do am e no get wetin pesin wan do, so I wan tell dem say dem do well for dat side.” She explain say her success don make di belle of her parents dey sweet, sake of say evri parent want dia pikin to dey successful and dey great for life.  “Na beta tin, evri parent want to see im pikin succeed , if pipo dey call dem dey tell dem say dem see me, my parents go tell me say make I hide o, make I no allow ,pipo touch me o, but na a tin of joy for dem, evri parent want dia pikin to dey great in life, make dem celebrate am for positive tins, so dey dey happy well well, belle dey sweet dem”. She still drop advice for young athletes, as she advice dem to put in di work, without pain no gain.  "I dey tell pipo say no be evribodi fit run fast, no be evribodi go become track star, but if you set your mind say you wan do dis tin , you get to work towards am,. No be to show up for practice and your bodi tire di next day, you no go come again, you get to go through dat pain. But pipo today no dey like go through di pain, dem wan run today today den blow tomorrow, e no dey work like dat. My advice for dem be say, make dem no let anybody tok fear into dia dreams, make dem too no tire, na hardwork e no dey happun overnight, na persistence and determination dey make pesin go higher. Tobi Amusan Profile Oluwatobiloba Amusan na Nigerian Hurdler. Na for April 23, 1997 dem born her, she from Ijebu-Ode. She dey go school for University of Texas, afta she finish from Our Lady of  Apostles Secondary school, Ijebu-Ode. She finish 4th for di 2020 Tokyo Olympics and she just set new African record. She be di current World number one for 100 metres Women's Hurdles. She don win plenti Gold medals for Nigeria, especially for di Commonwealth Games, African Games and di African Championships both for Relay. Di 25-year old don be World Champion, Diamond League final winner, and Commonwealth Games winner. Di Nigerian runner be two time All African Games winner as well as two times African champion. World Athletics bin report say Amusan bin contest for her first major competition at di age of 16 for di Donetsk World Youth Championships for Ukraine. She bin run di 200 metre race, as well as, di Medley relay.Howeva, her first move for athletics bin happun for Port Harcourt, Rivers State, Nigeria wia she bin contest for di AFN Golden League Meeting for April, 2012. She bin compete for di Long Jump wia she finish 5th with 916 score. Ova her career, she don do Hurdles, 100, 200, 300 and 400 metre races as well as relay and long jump competitions.