3 minute read
Dawn Harper Nelson
Q. Thanks for Interviewing with us tell everyone who you are and what you do?
Advertisement
A. I am Dawn Harper- Nelson an Olympic gold and silver medalist. I am a wife and a mom and I am also from East St. Louis.
Q. What made you want to compete in the Olympics?
A. Well, I started running track and became passionate about it early in life. Then I really started competing once I reached UCLA. I met my role model, Jackie Joyner Kersey, when I was about 13 and she gave me some encouraging words I had the talent and I worked hard at it and I took off from there.
Q. How was the experience training for the Olympics in Japan?
A. It was mind blowing! I actually competed in two other Olympics, Beijing and London. It was Just the thought of meeting people with different cultures all over the globe, and to be amongst the best of the best from each country.
Q. When was your first Olympic debut?
A. It was back in 2008. I had a great coach, Bobby Kersey, he really helped me and guided me along the way. I was just a baby at the time and I just was going to do literally anything he asked to be successful. He reassured me that I was totally ready at this point. I felt I was truly blessed at this point in my life to be given this opportunity at my age and win the gold medal.
Q. After Having the momentum with the success of your career, how were you able to shift over to the mother role?
A. Well, I thought I wanted a baby back in 2015, however, it didn’t go as planned. My husband was a great support and he wanted me to stop running when I felt like it. He didn’t want me to stop prematurely and have this void in my life. So, I actually didn’t really shift, I had great support from both my family and my husband’s family to be able to continue to run and still be a mom.
Q. What went through your mind when you found out that the 2020 Tokyo Olympics were being postponed?
A. First, I felt like I had been doing all of this training and now what. Then it went from being postponed to possibly cancelled. So, then I knew this pandemic was serious and figured this would give me time to perfect things that I felt I was rushed on. It really made me realize the pandemic is really affecting the world.
Q. Who is your sport hero(s)?
A. Jackie Joyner Kersey and Gail Devers. With Jackie, it was that we were from the same area and she perfected the craft also the connection with her husband he was my professional coach. Gail was one of the main reasons I went to UCLA and she went through everything with her illness and she is just a beast in the field.
Q. What are some of your best Mommy tips that you can share with us?
A. The main thing is keeping a schedule, make sure you give yourself a grace period. Also just be ok when things do not go according to plan. Just knowing you and your child(ren) are healthy.
Q. Where can the readers follow you?
A. The readers can follow me at Facebook: Dawn Harper Nelson Instagram: Dharp100mh Twitter: Dharp100mh
